«Las otras» cuidadoras: mujeres inmigrantes en el servicio doméstico y trasvases generizados en el ámbito territorial del bienestar

The gradual incorporation of women into the job market and the female rural exodus has led to a new series of care-related needs in society and in the family. As tasks at home are not divided equally, and the public policies need to conciliate family and work are severely lacking, families resort to outsourcing the work of home-based care. The outsourcing is always for women, mainly foreign women and grandmothers. Because it is closely linked to traditional gender roles, domestic services acts as a naturalised port of entry for female immigrants to enter the job market and to formalise their legal status. The characteristics and circumstances of this sector contribute to precarious work situations of abuse and exploitation, by reproducing the position of gender subordination historically assigned to women. This paper presents the results of two studies carried out in Castilla-La Mancha. One analyses the working conditions and discrimination of female migrants working in domestic service. The other deals with the activity, occupation, employment, use of time, conciliation and division of tasks.