Social policy is environmental policy: Paid work, unpaid care work, gender, and ecology

Abstract

This chapter discusses ways in which markets affect unpaid caring activities and the ecological environment by looking at two market failures: the Veblen effect of competition for status through emulating higher classes' consumption levels and intrafamily fallback position inequality associated with the devaluation of unpaid work. Both these market outcomes involve higher than optimal work hours and consumption levels, thus despoiling the environment and reducing time and economic activities in family and community spheres. Social and environmental policy recommendations to address these market failures by reducing inequality are shown to complement and entail one another.