Chapter 2 demonstrates how the recognition of the societal value of domestic service affected some aspects of domestic workers’ rights but not others. It analyzes debates around the 1926 law on domestic service and the effects it had on the domestic workers’ ability to resolve conflicts with employers in court or mediation. Domestic workers’ labor rights were limited by the new law to make their labor more accessible to employers: written labor agreements were no longer mandatory and there was no compensation for overtime work. Yet, the state was reluctant to limit domestic workers’ access to their employers housing after termination of contract because female homelessness was closely associated with prostitution. The new law put domestic workers at a disadvantage compared to other workers, which, together with continuing valorization of “productive” labor, made domestics seek employment opportunities outside domestic service. This chapter contributes to our understanding of the effects labor laws have on paid domestic labor and testifies to the importance of government regulations and protection.

This chapter first explores the marginalized condition of women around the world and traces the history of the transnational feminist movement. It discusses the relevant concepts such as public/private sphere, gender equality v. gender equity, and intersectionality. After a survey of the status of women’s rights under international and regional human rights law, it then examines various issues including the right to equality between men and women in marriage and family life, women’s rights in public and political life, sexual and reproductive rights, women’s land, property, housing rights, women’s rights to food, water, and sanitation, women workers’ rights in the workplace, and violence against women.