Invisibility of domestic workers in public policies to combat gender-based violence in Brazil

Abstract

This article analyzes domestic work in Brazil, historically characterized by devaluation, informality, and vulnerability, especially among Black women in situations of social inequality. It examines legislative advancements, such as Constitutional Amendment No. 72/2013 and Complementary Law No. 150/2015, highlighting the persistent gap between the formalization of rights and the effectiveness of public policies aimed at combating gender violence. It seeks to understand to what extent public policies address the specificities of domestic workers, from an intersectional perspective of gender, race, and class. To this end, a qualitative, exploratory approach is adopted, which includes an interdisciplinary bibliographic review and documentary analysis of statistical, normative, and institutional data. The results show that despite the existence of protective laws, the persistent lack of connection between sectors, coupled with insufficient oversight in the domestic environment and the invisibility of these women in public planning and budgeting processes, compromises the effectiveness of these norms. Furthermore, occurrences of slave-like labor persist, evidencing practices that harken back to a colonial period. It is concluded that by neglecting intersectionality and the concrete reality of domestic workers, Brazilian public policies fail to guarantee full protection and effective access to citizenship for this historically excluded group.