Social Protections & Poverty: A study of government social policy and the economic security of women in Canada and the United States
(2011) JAMM06 20111Department of Law
- Abstract
- Historically, the recognition of social rights began with the International Labour Organization’s 1944 Declaration of Philadelphia and its principle of social justice. Since then, a number of international human rights instruments have enshrined the rights to social protection and non-discrimination. The Canadian and United States governments have varied greatly in their respective approaches to social and economic rights. In the absence of adequate recognition of these rights, women and their economic security are disproportionately affected, as evidenced by the high rates of poverty among single mothers and elderly women in both nations, though more so in the United States. Since their starting points, the social policies of these... (More)
- Historically, the recognition of social rights began with the International Labour Organization’s 1944 Declaration of Philadelphia and its principle of social justice. Since then, a number of international human rights instruments have enshrined the rights to social protection and non-discrimination. The Canadian and United States governments have varied greatly in their respective approaches to social and economic rights. In the absence of adequate recognition of these rights, women and their economic security are disproportionately affected, as evidenced by the high rates of poverty among single mothers and elderly women in both nations, though more so in the United States. Since their starting points, the social policies of these governments have been a reflection of various political agendas and this thesis is a study of each country’s social protection system as it affects women. Using three social protections relevant to women’s lives as examples – government pensions, maternity benefits and access to health care – this thesis seeks to show that non-recognition of social rights has a detrimental effect on the economic security of women and leaves women, as a group, invisible. While there is no ‘one size fits all’ solution, constitutional reforms tailored to reflect each country’s particular circumstances are a promising option. In Canada, the goal is to preserve and strengthen the social protections already in place, while in the United States the aim is to find a constitutional legal basis for social rights and equality, noting that the most important chapters of constitutional law have yet to be written. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
http://lup.lub.lu.se/student-papers/record/2533949
- author
- Orchard, Maria LU
- supervisor
-
- Lee Swepston LU
- organization
- course
- JAMM06 20111
- year
- 2011
- type
- H2 - Master's Degree (Two Years)
- subject
- language
- English
- id
- 2533949
- date added to LUP
- 2012-07-13 10:40:44
- date last changed
- 2012-07-16 10:22:00
@misc{2533949,
abstract = {{Historically, the recognition of social rights began with the International Labour Organization’s 1944 Declaration of Philadelphia and its principle of social justice. Since then, a number of international human rights instruments have enshrined the rights to social protection and non-discrimination. The Canadian and United States governments have varied greatly in their respective approaches to social and economic rights. In the absence of adequate recognition of these rights, women and their economic security are disproportionately affected, as evidenced by the high rates of poverty among single mothers and elderly women in both nations, though more so in the United States. Since their starting points, the social policies of these governments have been a reflection of various political agendas and this thesis is a study of each country’s social protection system as it affects women. Using three social protections relevant to women’s lives as examples – government pensions, maternity benefits and access to health care – this thesis seeks to show that non-recognition of social rights has a detrimental effect on the economic security of women and leaves women, as a group, invisible. While there is no ‘one size fits all’ solution, constitutional reforms tailored to reflect each country’s particular circumstances are a promising option. In Canada, the goal is to preserve and strengthen the social protections already in place, while in the United States the aim is to find a constitutional legal basis for social rights and equality, noting that the most important chapters of constitutional law have yet to be written.}},
author = {{Orchard, Maria}},
language = {{eng}},
note = {{Student Paper}},
title = {{Social Protections & Poverty: A study of government social policy and the economic security of women in Canada and the United States}},
year = {{2011}},
}