Through feminism’s theoretical and practical mobilisations, the category or concept of ‘work’ itself was called into question.

Class is a mechanism that permits some people to make themselves heard but enforces silence on others, denying them power and agency.

It’s not that pre-industrial life was idyllic, peaceful, or non-exploitative. That most people no longer know how to make fabric or sew clothes is not something bad, except perhaps insofar as it makes people more reliant on the market. New technologies and labour-saving processes can be good things: the problem is who owns the technology required

These problems cannot be solved by consumer attempts to change patterns of demand. The model of outsourcing allows brands and producers to dodge accountability. As stories of abuse in the garment industry re-emerge, new consumer campaigns in the style of the Consumers’ League are popping up. Sometimes these campaigns are little more than a branding

Despite the problem of persistent low wages and growing in-work poverty, it is still claimed by the government that ‘work is the best way out of poverty’.

When I was ill, I saw quite how much people wanted to care for each other and how much those desires for care were frustrated by the way our society is set up.

That Uber and other employers are willing to spend quite so much money on making sure activity is not legally defined as work shows the lengths companies are prepared to go to avoid paying for the minimum support the law would oblige them to.

While depression remains stigmatised, burnout’s connection to professional duty and to success allows people to identify with it without social sanction.

Other conditions applied to the behaviour of claimants: this could mean compulsory unpaid work, or sanctions for missing appointments; in some cases, sanctions can mean losing eligibility for benefits for up to three years.15