Abstract

In a global ongoing economic crisis, any growth resource should be fully utilized to pull out of the crisis. Nevertheless, despite advanced domestic legislation and extended international regulation, women’s labor is a resource of growth still not fully utilized globally. Different reasons explain this fact. Often, domestic decision-makers and international organizations are held responsible for it. Less attention is paid to the effect on labor conditions globally, and on women’s labor utilization particularly, of two hidden players acting behind the curtains: multinational enterprises (MNEs) and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) supporting women’s rights. This essay explores the political economy behind a triangle of powers: women and NGOs representing them, governments and international economic organizations, and MNEs, analyzing political economy instruments and strategies used by NGOs and MNEs to promote their respective relevant interests in their relations with regulators, and assessing their effectiveness in achieving this goal. It suggests the current deficiencies of global and domestic efforts in this respect may reflect a compromise that both groups of interests can live with, but the global economic crisis may provide a momentum to pull out of this mutual comfort zone.