6533b7d6fe1ef96bd12658f7

RESEARCH PRODUCT

Criades globals: noves formes de precarització de les joves universitàries en situació d'au pair

subject

description

Au pair mobility, originally conceived as a form of cultural exchange, conceals forms of paid work and without a clear legal basis, developed mainly by young women with higher education. This program has become a way for middle-class families that can outsource housework, getting cheap and very flexible care work. First, we describe how in a context of increasing of the vital precariousness, the dominant discourses on human capital and cosmopolitanism prescribe as desirable the mobility in order to increase the employability. Second, by analyzing in-depth interviews we approach to the experiences and representations of women that were employed as au pairs. The results highlight the use of this program to address the absence of labour expectations. This use forced by the situation outlined a scenario that intensifies the pressure felt by the au pairs. Everyday relationships with the families favour the emergence and maintenance of forms of exploitation, hidden under the guise of family relations, where the exchanges are guided by the logic of reciprocity and emotional rewards.