Tijdschrift voor Economische en Sociale Geografie· 2026Q2
Slow Infrastructural Violence: The Lived Experiences of Urban Essential Workers
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- Q2SCImago
- 2026year
Short summary
Urban essential workers in Switzerland face 'slow infrastructural violence' due to invisibility, embodied strain, economic precarity, and exclusion from urban care infrastructures, perpetuating cycles of marginalization.
AI-generated from the title and abstract; the full text is not read.
Key points
- Urban essential workers are vital but undervalued social infrastructure in Switzerland.
- The study uses 37 walking interviews to explore their lived realities.
- Slow infrastructural violence is conceptualized through invisibility, embodied strain, economic precarity, and exclusion from care infrastructures.
- These dimensions create a reinforcing matrix of disadvantage and marginalization.
AI-generated from the title and abstract; the full text is not read.
Abstract
Abstract We examine how non‐healthcare urban essential workers constitute a vital yet undervalued social infrastructure that enables everyday life in Switzerland. Drawing on 37 (walking) interviews, the study foregrounds the lived realities of those whose reproductive labour sustains the city while remaining largely invisible. We use the concept of slow infrastructural violence to explore how urban inequalities – rooted in gender, class, race and migration status – structure essential workers' experiences. We develop a conceptual framework of slow infrastructural violence structured along four interrelated dimensions: invisibility (lack of recognition and respect), embodied strain (occupational exhaustion, stress, and health impacts), economic precarity (low wages and insecurities) and exclusion from essential urban care infrastructures (such as affordable housing and childcare). These intertwined dimensions create a mutually reinforcing matrix of disadvantage that perpetuates cycles of marginalisation in urban life. Addressing these conditions in urban policy and planning is crucial for creating more just and caring cities.
The authors' abstract, as published at the source. Tijdschrift voor Economische en Sociale Geografie, 2026 · DOI ↗
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Field: Urban Studies
Urban StudiesSocial Sciences