Women and Public Sector Precarity: Causes, Conditions and Consequences

In this report, Levac and Cowper-Smith explore the causes, conditions and consequences of precarity in Canada’s public sector using a gendered, intersectional analysis.

Precarious work bears significant consequences for workers in Canada, and public sector workers are no exception. Privatization, outsourcing, contract and part-time work have replaced permanent, full-time work for many workers in Canada, causing precarious conditions – or precarity – that leaves workers vulnerable. When precarity occurs in the public service, its impacts can be particularly problematic for women.