Imagine leaving your home and family, perhaps as a teenager, to find work miles away, and left at the mercy of strangers. Imagine working long hours six days a week with no vacation or sick leave. Imagine not being guaranteed a certain salary, and not having access to healthcare or government benefits and protections. This is what it is like to be one of the 2.3 million domestic workers in Mexico, effectively ignored by the government and considered lesser than others because of where they work—until now.
After generations of invisibility, a confluence of factors finally drew attention to the plight of domestic workers in Mexico—Hollywood and a new President. In 2018, acclaimed Mexican director, Alfonso Cuarón, released Roma, an award-winning film that conveys the hardships and realities of life as a domestic worker in Mexico. The film was an instant success with critics and audiences alike. Its worldwide release through Netflix, rather than through traditional theaters, allowed it to reach audiences that independent cinema does not often reach. Roma is an autobiographical film in which Cuaron transports the viewer into the life of a middle class family in Mexico in the 1970s. By focusing on the character of Cleo, with her personal sufferings, her sacrifices, and her love, Cuaron exposes the raw, often ignored, reality of domestic workers in the country. The humanity, nostalgia, and realism of the film impacted audiences both in Mexico, and around the world.
At the same time Mexico was in the midst of a political turning point with the election of Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador (AMLO), and his powerful pro-workers’ rights rhetoric. On December 5, 2018, just four days after Lopez Obrador’s first day in office, the Mexican Supreme Court ruled that all employers must enroll domestic workers in the social security system once the government provides the mechanisms to do so. The ruling, which gives the government three years to comply, would also give domestic workers access to the public health system and free government daycare for their children.
According to a report by the Miami Herald, nine out of 10 domestic workers in Mexico are women, where most are “live-in servants” who get four days off a month and work extended hours for little pay. Although domestic workers are inextricably embedded into Mexico’s social fabric, their economic contribution is often overlooked because the sector was not formalized. Thus, women who gave their entire lives to working for another family were left vulnerable to the whims and follies of their employer. No formalization meant no regulation in terms of benefits, salary, work hours, vacation days, or protections from discrimination or abuse. These women who were, and continue to be, such an important part of Mexican life, were in effect, invisible—left out of labor protections, not included in labor reforms, and not privy to the benefits of formalized labor—and this law works to correct some of those injustices.
Although this new law is a huge win for women’s rights, there is much work left to be done in Mexico—a country which is known for its progressive human rights and labor protections on paper, but its lack of enforcement capacity in practice. Certainly having the laws on the books is giant step forward for domestic workers and women in general, but it remains to be seen how the laws will be enforced, and whether the new administration will push for further reforms.
In a country where culture, education, and institutions continue to perpetuate traditionally sexist stereotypes of women, and where violence against women is a systemic problem, changes in the laws are rarely enough to engender actual social transformation. Women in Mexico continue to be consigned to certain sectors that are culturally considered “feminine,” which require “lower qualifications” such as nurses, custodians, domestic workers, etc. Issues such as the wage gap and the double shift continue to feed the structural disadvantages that women face. Furthermore, the new law leaves many vulnerabilities unaddressed that speak to the greater structural problems of the country—including racism, colorism, violence, and socioeconomic dynamics.
Although the recent triumphs should be celebrated, there is still more to be done regarding wages and working conditions. Despite the maximum 48-hour, six-day workweek established by law, domestic workers often work 12-hour day and may be afraid to ask for better working conditions. Domestic workers must be empowered and given the tools to advocate for their rights. Employers and society as a whole must be educated regarding labor rights and fair treatment of women. And the government must ensure that its laws are enforced throughout the country.
Although the recent triumphs should be celebrated, there is still more to be done regarding wages and working conditions. Despite the maximum 48-hour, six-day workweek established by law, domestic workers often work 12-hour day and may be afraid to ask for better working conditions. Domestic workers must be empowered and given the tools to advocate for their rights. Employers and society as a whole must be educated regarding labor rights and fair treatment of women. And the government must ensure that its laws are enforced throughout the country.
