"Come in the Dark": Domestic Workers and Their Rooms in Apartheid-Era Johannesburg, South Africa

2000 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
pp. 83 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rebecca Ginsburg
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Domestic Workers

“We cannot discriminate against someone without an eye or a leg … But I do look at obesity”: Statistical discrimination and employers’ recruitment strategies at housecleaning service companies in Johannesburg

2019 ◽  
Vol 40 (1) ◽  
pp. 25-41
Author(s):  
David Du Toit
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Domestic Work ◽  
Domestic Workers ◽  
Recruitment Strategies ◽  
Strong Impact ◽  
Recruitment Process ◽  
Demographic Profile ◽  
Job Seeking ◽  
Service Companies ◽  
Personal Skills

The landscape of paid domestic work has changed considerably in recent years with the growth in the number of housecleaning service companies in South Africa and elsewhere. Housecleaning service companies transform domestic work into a service economy where trained domestic workers render a professional cleaning service to clients. In South Africa, little is known about the factors that employers at housecleaning service companies take into consideration during the selection and recruitment process. A key feature of paid domestic work is the gender, class and race constructions of domestic workers, the vast majority of whom are women, usually women of colour, from low socio-economic backgrounds. Whether we are seeing a change in the demographic profile of domestic workers with the growth of housecleaning service companies remains unclear. This paper therefore focuses on the recruitment strategies of employers at selected housecleaning service companies in Johannesburg in an attempt to shed light on the challenges that jobseeking domestic workers may face. Open-ended interviews with managers revealed that gender, race, age, long-term unemployment, and technical and personal skills of job-seeking domestic workers have a strong impact on the recruitment process, while immigration status plays a somewhat reduced role. This paper concludes that housecleaning service companies have not changed the demographic profile of domestic workers in South Africa yet, and that paid domestic work is still predominantly a black woman’s job.

Is outsourcing better? Clients' views on contracting in domestic cleaning services

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
David du Toit ◽  
Lindy Heinecken
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Mixed Methods Research ◽  
Domestic Work ◽  
Domestic Workers ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Domestic Worker ◽  
Domestic Servants ◽  
The People ◽  
Routine Tasks

PurposeThe nature of paid domestic work is changing, with the growth in companies delivering domestic cleaning services. Few studies have looked at why people opt to use these services and the underlying drivers. As with the outsourcing of non-core tasks in businesses, outsourcing domestic work is motivated by similar, yet different reasons, which have to do with the personal and private nature of domestic employment. This study aims to establish the reasons why “clients”, who were former employers of domestic servants, opted to outsource domestic work to a domestic cleaning service provider.Design/methodology/approachGiven the limited research on domestic cleaning services in South Africa, a mixed-methods research approach is used.FindingsThe findings showed that there are three key motivations: the nature of the domestic cleaning service supplier, the services rendered by domestic workers and the tripartite employment relationships. These three benefits imply that clients have access to functional and numerical flexibility, unlike employing a domestic worker directly. This study contributes to the literature on outsourcing and domestic work by showing that clients not only look to change the economic structure of the relationship with domestic workers, but it allows them to psychologically and emotionally distance themselves from domestic workers.Research limitations/implicationsThis study shows that some people are no longer willing to have a relationship with the people who clean their homes, and that they believe it is simply not worth the effort to maintain a relationship. This is an aspect that needs further research, as this is the one sphere where women are united in their plight, albeit from different worldviews. Thus, a limitation is that this study only focuses on clients' views of outsourcing. Have domestic workers employed by the outsourced domestic cleaning service supplier become just like assembly-line workers, where they are anonymous to their clients, performing routine tasks with little recognition from those whose homes they are servicing? Future studies could focus on domestic workers' views on outsourcing and the effects it has on their working conditions and employment relations.Originality/valueFirstly, studies mainly focus on the Global North where domestic work and outsourcing have different dynamics, regulation policies and social changes when compared to South Africa. Secondly, few studies have sought to establish why people shift from employing a domestic or care worker directly to an outsourced domestic agency when direct domestic help is available and affordable. Considering these shortcomings, this study aims to provide a better understanding of domestic cleaning service suppliers from the perspective of clients, often omitted from the literature. Accordingly, this study aimed to establish what the benefits are for clients (former employers of domestic workers) who use domestic cleaning service suppliers.

scholarly journals The impact of minimum wages for domestic workers in Bloemfontein, South Africa

2010 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Phillip F. Blaauw ◽  
Louis J. Bothma
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Minimum Wage ◽  
Structural Changes ◽  
Domestic Workers ◽  
Real Wages ◽  
Employment Effects ◽  
Course Of Action ◽  
Minimum Wage Legislation ◽  
The Impact

Orientation: The number of domestic workers in South Africa has decreased in the last decade, seemingly corresponding with efforts by government to increase regulation.Research purpose: The purpose of this study was to investigate possible structural changes in this labour market over the last decade, as well as the possible employment effects of the latest minimum wage provisions.Motivation for the study: Previous studies on the topic were carried out either prior to, or just after, the implementation of the minimum wage legislation for domestic workers. Now, five years after implementation, the conclusions and predictions of these studies need to be evaluated.Research design, approach and method: The study utilised a repeat survey in the suburb of Langenhoven Park in Bloemfontein, where two previous microstudies had been conducted. Structural interviews were conducted with a sample of 132 respondents and the data analysed.Main findings: There are now fewer domestic workers working for more employers, than there were ten years ago. In contrast to predictions from the literature, these changes mostly occurred before the implementation of the legislation. Real wages and legislative compliance improved for those who remained employed.Practical implications: The task of balancing the improvement of the lives of domestic workers and the possible adverse consequences of the legislation, in the form of job losses, remains as daunting as it was ten years ago.Contribution: Literature predicts changes in the market for domestic workers to be long term. This study shows that most changes took place before the implementation of the legislation as employers decided on their course of action.

An Investigation of the Challenges Faced by Female Domestic Workers: The Case of Mpumalanga Province, South Africa

2017 ◽  
Vol 8 (4) ◽  
pp. 166-176
Author(s):  
T.J. Mudau ◽  
T.D. Thobejane ◽  
S. Khosa
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Domestic Workers ◽  
Mpumalanga Province

Household Social Mobility for Paid Domestic Workers and Other Low-Skilled Women Employed in South Africa

2018 ◽  
Vol 24 (3) ◽  
pp. 29-55 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ronelle Burger ◽  
Marisa Von Fintel ◽  
Carina Van der Watt
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Social Mobility ◽  
Domestic Workers

scholarly journals A descriptive study to explore working conditions and childcare practices among informal women workers in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa: identifying opportunities to support childcare for mothers in informal work

2019 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Christiane Horwood ◽  
Lyn Haskins ◽  
Laura Alfers ◽  
Zandile Masango-Muzindutsi ◽  
Richard Dobson ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Women Workers ◽  
Informal Economy ◽  
Working Hours ◽  
Domestic Workers ◽  
Rural Site ◽  
Cross Sectional Survey ◽  
Informal Work ◽  
Kwazulu Natal ◽  
Informal Traders

Abstract Background Although women working in the informal economy are a large and vulnerable group, little is known about infant feeding and childcare practices among these women. The aim of this study was to explore childcare practices among mothers in informal work. Methods A cross-sectional survey among mothers with children aged < 2 years working in the informal economy in an urban and a rural site in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. Participants were selected using purposive and snowball sampling. Results A total of 247 interviews were conducted with 170 informal traders and 77 domestic workers. Most mothers lived with their child (225/247, 91.1%), had initiated breastfeeding (208/247; 84.2%) and many were still breastfeeding (112/247; 45.3%). Among 96 mothers who had stopped breastfeeding, the most common reason was returning to work (34/96; 35.4%). Many mothers relied on family members, particularly grandmothers, to care for their child while they were working (103/247, 41.7%) but some mothers took their child with them to work (70/247; 28.1%). Few fathers participated in the care of their child: 54 mothers (21.9%) reported that the father had ever looked after the child while she was away from home. Domestic workers were less likely than informal traders to take their child to work (p = 0.038). Women reported receiving a salary from an informal employer (119), or being own-account workers (120) or being unpaid/paid in kind (8). Most participants were in stable work (> 4 years) with regular working hours, but received very low pay. Domestic workers were more likely than informal traders to have regular working hours (p = 0.004), and to be earning >$240 per month (p = 0.003). Mothers reported high levels of food insecurity for themselves and their child: 153 mothers (61.9%) reported having missed a meal in the past month due to lack of resources to buy food, and 88 (35.6%) mothers reported that their child had missed a meal for this reason. Conclusion This study provides a preliminary description of informal women workers who, despite having stable work, are vulnerable, low paid and food insecure. These women may require support to provide optimal childcare and nutrition for their children.

scholarly journals Illegal migrant Basotho women in South Africa: Exposure to vulnerability in domestic services

2021 ◽  
Vol 77 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mosiuoa B. Makhata ◽  
Maake J. Masango
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Domestic Workers ◽  
Domestic Service ◽  
Illegal Migration ◽  
Illegal Migrant ◽  
Illegal Migrants ◽  
Job Opportunities ◽  
Essential Services ◽  
Working And Living Conditions ◽  
The Church

The illegal migration of Basotho women to South Africa in order to render domestic service is alarming because they are subjected to harsh treatment. This is a pastoral and theological concern for the church. As migrants, their struggle begins from the household circumstances that often force them to leave and seek job opportunities undocumented or without following prescribed migration procedures. They are then subjected to migration processes and procedures: for example, corruption and bribery by migration officers and illegal dealers (lirurubele). The working and living conditions in South Africa are often unconducive for illegal migrants. As economic and illegal migrants, they are often considered as lesser by prejudiced employers who treat them inhumanely. Accessing essential services also imposes a significant threat to their lives.Contribution: Through this study, the article will reveal the vulnerability faced by illegal migrant Basotho women as domestic workers in South Africa.

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