Brazil wants to know more about its domestic workers

Brazil officially had 5.83 million domestic workers in 2022 — almost the entire population of Denmark. 

The country’s Institute for Applied Economic Research (Ipea) is now conducting a study to understand this group’s labor conditions. An online survey plans to provide the government with data on the characteristics of domestic workers’ tasks, the frequency with which they go to clients’ homes (especially if working for multiple employers), the distances they must travel daily, and the costs they have to pay to commute and eat.

“Our idea is to familiarize ourselves with the faces behind caregiving. We want to understand how they obtained their jobs and what rights they have or lack,” says Ana Amélia Camarano, the survey’s head researcher. “By getting to know these caregivers personally, governments can develop policies to enhance the quality of their work and lives, thereby improving the overall service provided.”

Brazil has one of the highest cohorts of domestic workers in the world. The significance of this occupation, which is predominantly female, is intertwined with the trajectory of poor women and girls in the labor market within the context of profound racial and social inequalities characteristic of the country. 

Domestic workers are central figures in Brazil, a hidden workforce that keeps society running. They are a crucial component of how the country organizes its care system, as these workers cater to the demand for household and personal care in middle- and upper-class neighborhoods.

Researcher Louisa Acciari wrote in a paper published by the London School of Business: “Domestic work is commonly described as a modern form...