The women that do work in mines face severe health and safety risks and are frequently paid less than men that perform the same work. They undertake particularly arduous and hazardous work, including breaking and shifting rocks, and using highly toxic mercury to extract gold. Mercury can impair brain function, damaging coordination and memory, and cause hearing loss, birth defects and miscarriage. It’s especially dangerous for women of childbearing age and pregnant women. The fact that this work frequently takes place in enclosed spaces at home represents a grave health risk for families and communities exposed to the toxic fumes emitted by burning mercury.
The time that women have for further economic activities is limited by childcare and household responsibilities. In carrying out these undervalued tasks alongside their jobs, working women have ‘double burdens’. As daycare facilities are rarely available, women must take their children to work, exposing them to dangers at mining sites (mercury fumes, dangerous terrain) where children also ‘help out’ as child labourers.
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