The form of women's participation in casual work and its implications in terms of their subordination is determined by a complex inter‐relationship of economic and non‐economic (specifically ideological) factors. This paper uses a case study from Guayaquil, Ecuador, to examine the function and importance of women's work in the survival strategies of low‐income households, in a situation where the majority of men are excluded from secure ‘formal’ wage‐sector employment.