Do cotidiano ao coletivo : histórias de vida de trabalhadoras domésticas e o papel do sindicato

Abstract

The study investigates life histories and how unionized domestic workers construct strategies to cope with and resist suffering in their work. Based on life narratives and semi-structured interviews, both the material and subjective dimensions of the activity were analyzed, considering gender, race, and class. The results indicate that domestic work, historically devalued and marked by unequal relationships, mobilizes affective bonds and experiences of recognition, while simultaneously reproducing structural inequalities. Union engagement emerges as a space for support, network building, and raising awareness of rights, fostering the re-signification of the activity and strengthening strategies of resistance. It was concluded that, even in contexts of precarization, collective organization contributes to shifting suffering from the individual to the social level, promoting recognition and empowerment of these workers as rights-bearing subjects.