Sociodemographic, Occupational, and Health Profile of Brazilian Housekeepers and House Cleaners-A

Viviane de Freitas Cardoso1, Cristiane Shinohara Moriguchi2, Tatiana de Oliveira Sato1

  • 1Physical Therapy Graduation Program, Federal University of São Carlos (UFSCar), São Carlos, Brazil.

For many women, house cleaning is an important way to participate in the labor market. In Brazil, there are 2 types of domestic workers: housekeepers have relatively secure employment and house cleaners are day laborers. The aim of this hypothesis-generating study was to describe the sociodemographic, occupational and health profile of a sample of domestic workers in Brazil. House cleaners received lower wages, had longer daily working hours and worked in a larger number of homes each week in comparison to housekeepers. About 51% of the domestic workers in this sample reported the use of pain medication and 34% reported spinal problems. Musculoskeletal symptoms were frequent in the lower back and upper limbs. Forty-seven percent reported high blood pressure. This study highlights the vulnerability of domestic workers, especially house cleaners, regarding workload, salary, and health conditions. Level of education is a contributing factor to this vulnerability.

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