Paid Domestic Work: Gender and the Informal Economy in Mexico

A consideration of paid domestic work as an aspect of the informal economy in Mexico identifies some distinctive features: a paternalistic view rather than a labor relation based on a contract, a reluctance on the part of the state to regulate this employment area, and a devaluation of this work as something largely performed by women who are poor and of rural or indigenous origin. The lack of social security is almost universal among paid domestic workers, and coverage is one of the principal demands of organizations formed in defense of their rights.Un analisis del trabajo domestico remunerado como un aspecto de la economia informal en Mexico muestra algunos rasgos distintivos: una vision paternalista por encima de una relacion laboral basada en un contrato, una renuencia por parte del Estado a regular esta ocupacion laboral, y una devaluacion de dicho trabajo como algo que realizan en gran parte las mujeres pobres y de origen rural o indigena. La falta de un seguro social es casi universal entre los tr...