Becky Clark: Would a Universal Basic Income (UBI) promote gender justice?
Would a Universal Basic Income (UBI) promote gender justice? This paper addresses this question by assessing UBI against its capacity for gender-justice enhancement and gender-justice achievement. There are at least two feminist criteria for the former: firstly, whether a UBI lessens the sexual division of labour (SDL); and secondly, whether a UBI alleviates the gendered exploitation of women. It is possible that, at least in the short run, these two criteria come into conflict; in such cases, I argue that the latter criterion should be prioritised. With respect to gender-justice achievement, I argue that UBI’s ability to realise this goal largely depends upon the overall package of policy measures on offer as well as the discursive context in which the demand for UBI is articulated. The paper concludes that, on balance, feminist considerations support the implementation of a UBI; however, a further question remains as to whether feminists should endorse a UBI all-things-considered.
Additional Information: Ockham will be held on MS Teams during HT21. Please email alexander.read@philosophy.ox.ac.uk if you wish to attend.
