Active resistance of domestic workers in Mexico: workshops, learning and empowerment

Abstract

Based on the field work carried out at the Support and Training Center for Domestic Workers and at the National Union of Domestic Workers, our objective is to examine how domestic workers build mechanisms with which they can resist and respond to violations of labor human rights by their employers. Likewise, we review what type of practices within the organization allows the workers to acquire tools to eventually become empowered, both individually and collectively. One of the most effective ways they have found to respond has been participation in organizations that openly promote the defense of their labor human rights. We argue that there is no straight or secure route to the empowerment of domestic workers and we present, nonetheless, some of the transitions experienced by women workers on their way to empowerment.