A mulher abandonada da casa: um retrato social e econômico das empregadas domésticas escravizadas

Abstract

This study presents a critical and interdisciplinary analysis of domestic work in Brazil, particularly in its contemporary form under conditions analogous to slavery. From a historical-legal perspective, it investigates how structures of racial, gender, and class domination—rooted in the country's slaveholding past—continue to sustain practices of exploitation and subordination within the domestic environment. The research highlights legislative advancements, such as Constitutional Amendment No. 72/2013 and Complementary Law No. 150/2015, while also emphasizing the persistent gap between the formal recognition of domestic workers’ rights and their effective implementation. Moreover, the study examines the normalization of modern slavery through affective bonds established between employers and domestic workers—bonds often used as tools of control and silencing, disguising abusive relationships under the appearance of care and familial connection. Based on the emblematic case presented in the podcast “A Mulher da Casa Abandonada” (The Woman in the Abandoned House), this dissertation seeks to understand the structural obstacles that hinder the eradication of domestic slave labor in Brazil, with a focus on informality and the barriers to state inspection. By employing bibliographical and documentary research methods, along with media content analysis, the study offers critical reflections and proposes measures to promote decent work, human dignity, and social justice, reaffirming the urgency of effective public policies and adequate enforcement mechanisms.