Impact du Covid-19 sur la vie et l’agentivité des travailleuses domestiques migrantes

Hypervulnerability and Agency: The Impact of the Covid-19 Pandemic on Migrant Women Working in the Domestic Services Sector

Migrant domestic workers (MDWs) represent an essential workforce. They are indispensable to the well-being of many households and play a key role in caring for young children, the elderly, and the sick. Although the Covid-19 pandemic has destabilised everyone’s lives, it has impacted some groups more than others. In fact, we would argue that migrant women working in the domestic services sector have found themselves experiencing what could be described as “hypervulnerability.”

However, scholars have yet to carefully consider how the effects of the pandemic on female MDWs vary depending on residence status (from undocumented migrants to those holding the most stable residence permits) and employment status (formal or informal), as well as on these women’s ability to exercise agency in different contexts. Nor is there a clear understanding of how female MDWs view the pandemic-related public health measures introduced by Swiss authorities, the extent to which they have complied with the regulations in force, the latter’s impact on workers’ rights and working conditions, and associated forms of negotiation. Moreover, up until now, there have been few studies in Switzerland that have adopted the perspective of domestic workers themselves, in a way that showcases their voices, their narratives, and their ability to exercise agency. Rather, women employed in the domestic services sector are most often portrayed as “victims” of global inequalities. But given how the pandemic has left MDWs in an even more precarious position, the question of agency is crucial. By emphasising the theoretical notions of critical agency and intersectionality, we aim to explore not only the various ways in which pandemic-related constraints have been interpreted, negotiated, and circumvented, but also those instances where women have exercised agency and ultimately reinvented themselves in response to the crisis.

This will involve considering how categories of sex/gender, class, ethno-race, ethnicity, age, disability, religion, and sexual orientation produce multiple, simultaneous, and intersecting forms of inequality. Furthermore, by eschewing the idea that one category should take precedence over the others, we can achieve a more complex understanding of power relationships. However, we will avoid making any assumptions regarding what constitutes a resource capable of supporting agency. Rather, we will base our analysis on the perspective of those concerned.

Specifically, our research will address the following two questions: What has been the impact of Covid-19 on female MDWs, given their state of hypervulnerability? How have these women experienced, reacted to, and adapted to the crisis, and how have they reimagined “stability” during and after the pandemic?

We will conduct a total of 128 biographical-narrative interviews in four cantons (Berne, Fribourg, Geneva, and Zurich) with two categories of MDWs: (a) those outside the asylum system, whether they are undocumented or hold a Permit B or C; and (b) those within the asylum system, including recognised refugees (Permit B), refugees and other persons admitted temporarily (Permit F), asylum seekers (Permit N), and rejected asylum seekers who find themselves undocumented. We will also conduct 60 exploratory, semi-structured individual interviews with representatives of social service agencies and public health organisations based in the cantons covered by the study. Finally, we will conduct documentary research and discursive analysis to uncover the logic behind policies and measures that affected MDWs during Covid-19, while focussing on the process of social problematisation.

The project’s participatory approach will foster the co-production of knowledge, ensure a better alignment of research topics with the needs of the populations concerned, and promote the effective transfer of research results to practise. Eighteen institutions have already committed to supporting the project and to participating in an expert advisory committee. In addition, we will organise World Café events where policymakers, representatives of participating institutions and associations, and MDWs will jointly participate in guided discussions.

These methodological choices are designed to achieve the following two sets of objectives:

• Achieving a better understanding of how cantonal Covid-19 policies and measures have affected precarious migrants, including MDWs; arguments used to justify these policies and measures; the impact of the pandemic itself and of Covid-19 policies on the lives and well-being of domestic workers from the perspective of both public actors responsible for implementation (e.g., health agency representatives, social service providers) and MDWs themselves; and how effects have varied based on class, gender, race, legal status (type of permit, conditions of employment), and associated inequalities.
• Analysing the agency exercised by female MDWs in response to the crisis; the meanings these women attribute to pandemic-related developments and to everyday risks (e.g., accepting precarious working conditions, forgoing certain rights); the attitudes, strategies, and compliance behaviours adopted in response to public health guidelines; and the rationales, negotiations, and resources relied upon to achieve stability.

Close collaboration with experts and migrants—especially through World Café events, workshops and expert advisory committees—will foster the development of recommendations. Indeed, in addition to producing in-depth and contextualised knowledge on women’s agency in the context of the pandemic, the project will identify evidence-based strategies, practical approaches, and concrete measures for supporting vulnerable populations and promoting their well-being in times of societal crisis.