Ce mémoire aborde le partage des tâches chez les couples guinéens (mariés avec enfants) établis au Québec. Nous avons exploré essentiellement quelques éléments qui reviennent dans les propos des couples interrogés. Les résultats obtenus montrent tout d'abord que les hommes sont restés longtemps cantonnés à la sphère productive dans leur pays d’origine, exclus de toutes les activités relatives au « care » largement assumées par les femmes. Or en l’absence de réseau au Québec, les deux membres du couple se trouvent en situation de plus grande dépendance mutuelle pour leur survie, et le conjoint n’a pas le choix de s’impliquer. Ainsi, les nécessités économiques poussent davantage aux changements observés chez les hommes que la sensibilité aux « valeurs démocratiques/féministes » du pays d’accueil. En effet, les propos de certaines femmes interrogées montrent qu’elles sont satisfaites de venir rejoindre leur mari au Québec et de rester à leurs côtés, tout en investissant dans des activités professionnelles auxquelles elles n’avaient pas accès, même étant instruites, dans leur pays d’origine. L’installation au Québec augmente leur pouvoir de négociation dans le couple et pousse leur conjoint à s’impliquer davantage dans les tâches connotées comme « féminines » en Guinée. / This thesis addresses the sharing of tasks within Guinean couples (married with children) established in Quebec. In this sense, it lays the groundwork for an analysis still to be deepened. I essentially explored a few elements that recur in the semi-structured interviews performed. The results show first of all that men have long remained confined to the productive sphere in their country of origin, excluded from all care activities largely assumed by women. However, in the absence of a network in Quebec, the two members of the couple are now in greater mutual dependence for their survival and the spouse does not have much choice to get involved. Thus, economic necessities drive the observed changes more than sensitivity to the “democratic/feminist values” of the host country. Indeed, some women are more satisfied to come and stay with their husbands in Quebec and to invest in professional activities to which they had not accessed even being educated in the country of origin. This increases their bargaining power in the couple and pushes their husbands to become more involved in tasks connoted as “feminine” in Guinea.

Malgré une demande croissante dans le secteur du travail domestique et un poids économique mondial considérable, les travailleuses domestiques migrantes demeurent parmi les plus précaires et les plus exploitées de la planète. Invisibles, isolées et travaillant pour des particuliers dans des résidences privées, elles échappent aux catégories traditionnelles d’emploi. Ces travailleuses se retrouvent alors à évoluer en marge du cadre légal ou encore, elles peinent à faire appliquer correctement les lois conçues pour les protéger. Ce mémoire cherche donc à analyser les manières d’envisager le droit afin de garantir un réel accès à la justice pour les travailleuses domestiques migrantes. En abordant d’abord les obstacles systémiques qui font échec à la réglementation du secteur domestique à travers le monde, cette recherche démontre une inadéquation du droit traditionnel à la réalité des travailleuses par l’analyse des effets de la réglementation canadienne qui leur est applicable. À la lumière de la récente Convention concernant le travail décent pour les travailleuses et travailleurs domestiques, ce mémoire démontre qu’une conceptualisation du droit basée sur le pluralisme juridique fournit des alternatives aux travailleuses domestiques migrantes pour accéder à la justice. Ultimement, l’empowerment de ces travailleuses par leur inclusion dans le dialogue social couplé à une réglementation adaptée à leur réalité permettra d’assurer une protection efficace de leurs droits. / In spite of an ever increasing demand in the domestic work sector and a considerable worldwide economic weight, migrant domestic workers are among the most precarious and exploited globally. Invisible, isolated and working for individuals in private residences, they fall outside the traditional work categorizations. Therefore, these women find themselves operating in margin of the legal system or, when they are protected by laws, they struggle to have those laws applied efficiently. This research will try to analyze the different ways we can consider law in order to guarantee a real and efficient access to justice to migrant domestic workers. After addressing the systemic obstacles to domestic work regulation worldwide, this research explores the inconsistency between traditional law and the reality of migrant domestic workers by analyzing the effects of the applicable Canadian regulation. In light of the recent Convention concerning decent work for domestic workers, this essay shows that a conceptualization of law based on legal pluralism offers domestic workers an alternative access to justice. Ultimately, including these workers in the social dialogue and implementing specific regulation adapted to their reality will provide them with an empowerment that will insure an effective protection of their rights.

Le travail domestique est une des formes d’emploi les plus anciennes au monde. Au Brésil, ce type de service tire son origine de l’esclavage, technique d’exploitation économique qui a marqué l’histoire du pays durant environ 400 (quatre cents) ans. Encore au XXIème siècle, le travail domestique est sous-évalué et peine à être reconnu comme un vrai travail. La législation nationale a progressé au point de reconnaitre aux employés de maison les mêmes droits dont jouissent les autres salariés (amendement constitutionnel, 2013). Le droit international du travail joue un rôle crucial dans l’encadrement de la situation des travailleuses domestiques au monde. La Convention concernant le travail décent pour les travailleurs et travailleuses domestiques (n° 189) et la Recommandation n° 201 l’accompagnant de l’Organisation internationale du travail (OIT) occupent une place importante dans la promotion du travail décent aux travailleurs domestiques. Malgré l’existence de normes – nationales et internationales – importantes, la problématique de la condition de travail et de vie des travailleuses domestiques au Brésil va au-delà de la législation, impliquant la notion culturelle de dévalorisation du travail domestique, cette même conception qui associe le travail à domicile à l’esclavage. / Domestic work is one of the oldest forms of employment in the world. In Brazil, this type of service has its roots in slavery, an economic exploitation technique that has marked the history of the country for about 400 (four hundred) years. Even in the XXI century, domestic work is undervalued and barely recognized as a real job. National legislation has progressed to the point of recognizing domestic workers the same rights enjoyed by other employees (Constitutional Amendment, 2013). The International labor law has a crucial importance in the supervision of the situation of domestic workers in the world. The Convention Concerning Decent Work for Domestic Workers (n° 189) and the Recommendation n° 201 of the International Labour Organisation (ILO) play a key role in promoting decent work for domestic workers. Despite the existence of relevant national and international standards, the matter of working and living conditions of domestic workers in Brazil goes beyond the legislation because it involves the notion of cultural devaluation of domestic work, the same idea that associates home work to slavery.

Using dirt and cleaning as a point of departure, I have examined how categorization and intentionality affects our perception of value. The work is partly performative in its nature where this performativity sets the limelight on the transition between categories: From dirt to craft, from irrational behaviour to art. In the artistic process, I have used coffee rings on table cloths, shoeprints on wallpapers and  the act of mopping as a means of questioning. Through this, I also reveal and question hierarchies in society. The essay discusses and theoretically relates to the artistic work. / Med utgångspunkt i smuts har jag underökt hur kategorisering och intentionalitet påverkar vår uppfattning av värde. Arbetet är delvis performativt till sin natur, där denna performativitet sätter fokus på övergången från en kategori till en annan: Från smuts till konsthantverk, från irrationellt beteende till konst. I den konstnärliga processen har jag använt mig av kafferingar på dukar, skoavtryck på tapeter och moppande av golv som medel för ifrågasättande. PÅ detta vis blottlägger och ifrågasätter jag hierarkier i samhället. I uppsatsen diskuterar jag och relaterar teoretiskt till det konstnärliga arbetet.

Malgré une demande croissante dans le secteur du travail domestique et un poids économique mondial considérable, les travailleuses domestiques migrantes demeurent parmi les plus précaires et les plus exploitées de la planète. Invisibles, isolées et travaillant pour des particuliers dans des résidences privées, elles échappent aux catégories traditionnelles d’emploi. Ces travailleuses se retrouvent alors à évoluer en marge du cadre légal ou encore, elles peinent à faire appliquer correctement les lois conçues pour les protéger. Ce mémoire cherche donc à analyser les manières d’envisager le droit afin de garantir un réel accès à la justice pour les travailleuses domestiques migrantes. En abordant d’abord les obstacles systémiques qui font échec à la réglementation du secteur domestique à travers le monde, cette recherche démontre une inadéquation du droit traditionnel à la réalité des travailleuses par l’analyse des effets de la réglementation canadienne qui leur est applicable. À la lumière de la récente Convention concernant le travail décent pour les travailleuses et travailleurs domestiques, ce mémoire démontre qu’une conceptualisation du droit basée sur le pluralisme juridique fournit des alternatives aux travailleuses domestiques migrantes pour accéder à la justice. Ultimement, l’empowerment de ces travailleuses par leur inclusion dans le dialogue social couplé à une réglementation adaptée à leur réalité permettra d’assurer une protection efficace de leurs droits. / In spite of an ever increasing demand in the domestic work sector and a considerable worldwide economic weight, migrant domestic workers are among the most precarious and exploited globally. Invisible, isolated and working for individuals in private residences, they fall outside the traditional work categorizations. Therefore, these women find themselves operating in margin of the legal system or, when they are protected by laws, they struggle to have those laws applied efficiently. This research will try to analyze the different ways we can consider law in order to guarantee a real and efficient access to justice to migrant domestic workers. After addressing the systemic obstacles to domestic work regulation worldwide, this research explores the inconsistency between traditional law and the reality of migrant domestic workers by analyzing the effects of the applicable Canadian regulation. In light of the recent Convention concerning decent work for domestic workers, this essay shows that a conceptualization of law based on legal pluralism offers domestic workers an alternative access to justice. Ultimately, including these workers in the social dialogue and implementing specific regulation adapted to their reality will provide them with an empowerment that will insure an effective protection of their rights.

This thesis seeks to uncover women’s concerns about chemicals in the household, and, more specifically, in cleaning products. The research is based on semi-structured interviews with women who are primarily responsible for household cleaning and who consciously avoid conventional cleaning products. From a sociological standpoint, the topic remains unstudied. The women were critical of greenwashing and the institutions responsible for chemical regulation. Further, the women’s chemical-free lifestyle defied conventional definitions of activism. Sociological theories of risk are used to help understand women’s avoidance of chemicals. It was found that tenets of the precautionary principle were reflected in their reasoning for avoiding chemicals. Recent biomonitoring and body burden studies have influenced women’s knowledge of chemical risk and their decision to avoid them. The thesis demonstrates that risk-management, in this context, has become an individualized pursuit reflective of the neo-liberal ideology informing chemical regulation. / Canadian Institutes of Health Research

This thesis examines the regulation of women in public space in Liverpool between 1908 and 1957. It considers the complex relationship between the laws used to police solicitation, governmental debate about female prostitution and local purity campaigners’ concerns with the moral vulnerability of young, working-class, urban women. It is argued that the ways in which prostitution was understood and managed had an impact upon all women’s access to and use of public space, together with wider definitions of female morality and immorality. The thesis adds to historical understandings about the implications of prostitution regulation in the twentieth century, by moving away from London-focused histories to offer a detailed analysis of the ways in which national debates about vice were taken up at local level and with what consequences. I begin by exploring the problems with policing prostitution in the early-twentieth century and argue that increasing concern about the difficulty in differentiating prostitutes from ‘ordinary’ women provoked anxiety amongst law makers and government officials alike. It is argued that the debates canvassed by the 1927 Macmillan Committee indicate the degree to which moral codes about female sexuality informed official approaches to prostitution. The thesis considers the implications of these broad debates in Liverpool. Focusing on the work of the Liverpool Vigilance Association (LVA), it is proposed that fears about the moral threat of prostitution fuelled the organisation’s belief in the necessity of preventative patrol work centred on the moral surveillance of young, working-class women. This thesis shows that in interwar Liverpool, women’s movements were circumscribed first and foremost by their gender. Traditional, nineteenth-century ideas about women’s place within the domestic sphere created a sense among local purity campaigners that female morality was being threatened by women’s visibility in urban spaces. Other aspects of social status, such as class, race and employment experiences, heightened the interest of the LVA in targeting distinctive groups of women. The thesis demonstrates that in their efforts to regulate women’s movements through the city of Liverpool, local purists singled-out working-class and immigrant (especially Irish) women, as they believed them to be the most susceptible to corruption. This thesis draws on a wide range of archival sources, especially Home Office Records relating to the Public Places (Order) Bill and the establishment of the 1927 Macmillan Committee, as well as the LVA archive, in order to show how national and local policies on prostitution were both interdependent and distinct.

This study reviews Rational Choice theory and Informal Institutions theory and uses new data to explain the persistence and scale of Argentina's informal domestic work sector. The domestic work sector in Argentina represents a typical case in Latin America: almost entirely dominated by women and high informality levels. The sector has had legal recognition for over a decade, but most of the sector's workers work under precarious conditions without access to those stipulated rights. In line with the adoption of new feminist policies during the last decade in Argentina, recent governments have brought more attention to women working in the domestic sector. This study investigates the implementation of a current financial incentive called Registradas which aims to increase registration levels in the domestic work sector. The material was collected during 29 weeks in Buenos Aires through interviews, surveys with employers, and observational studies from a Facebook group with domestic workers. The findings suggest that the two theories complement each other. Employers and employees in the domestic work sector act rationally from self-interest. However, unwritten rules, expectations of others' behavior, and perceptions of domestic work as an occupation also influence both groups' perceptions of choice and cost evaluation. These unwritten rules restrict and disadvantage employees due to power imbalances, gender norms, lack of information about their labor rights, and poverty. Finally, the study found that the program Registradas has had little effect on the sector's informality rates. The RCT suggests that the low impact could be due to formal employment not being a costly beneficial choice for the employers and neither the employees. This conclusion, however, needs to be understood in a context where labor laws and social security are not systematically and effectively enforced. Weak formal institutions thus enable a competing informal institution of informal employment and, ultimately, costs and benefits of the available choices for employers and employees. / Este estudio revisa la teoría de la Elección Racional y la teoría de las InstitucionesInformales, y utiliza nuevos datos para explicar la persistencia y la escala del sector informaldel trabajo doméstico en Argentina. El sector del trabajo doméstico en Argentina representaun caso típico en América Latina: está dominado casi en su totalidad por mujeres y presentaaltos niveles de informalidad. Aunque el sector cuenta con reconocimiento legal desde hacemás de una década, la mayoría de las trabajadoras del sector laboran en condicionesprecarias, sin acceso a los derechos estipulados. En línea con la adopción de nuevaspolíticas feministas durante la última década en Argentina, los últimos gobiernos hanprestado más atención a las mujeres que trabajan en el sector doméstico. Este estudioinvestiga la implementación del incentivo económico actual llamado Programa Registradas,el cual tiene como objetivo aumentar la formalidad del sector doméstico. El material serecopiló durante 29 semanas en Buenos Aires, mediante entrevistas, encuestas aempleadores y estudios observacionales de un grupo de Facebook con trabajadorasdomésticas. Los resultados sugieren que las dos teorías se complementan. Tanto losempleadores como los empleados del sector doméstico actúan racionalmente en función desus propios intereses. Sin embargo, las reglas no escritas, las expectativas sobre elcomportamiento de los demás y la percepción del trabajo doméstico como una ocupacióntambién influyen en la percepción de la elección y la evaluación de costos de ambos grupos.Estas reglas no escritas restringen y perjudican a las empleadas debido a los desequilibriosde poder, las normas de género, la falta de información sobre sus derechos laborales y lapobreza. Finalmente, el estudio encontró que, hasta la fecha, el Programa Registradas noha tenido ningún efecto significativo en la reducción de la tasa de informalidad del sector. Lateoría de la Elección Racional sugiere que el bajo impacto podría deberse a que el empleoformal no es una opción costosa ni beneficiosa ni para los empleadores ni para losempleados. Sin embargo, esta conclusión debe entenderse en un contexto en el que lalegislación laboral y la obra social no se aplican de forma sistemática y eficaz. La debilidadde las instituciones formales permite, por tanto, una institución informal competidora delempleo informal y, en última instancia, influye en los costos y beneficios de las opcionesdisponibles para empresarios y trabajadores.

Emotional home demands, cognitive home demands, home pressure, development possibilities, autonomy, social support, nonwork–work interference, spouse–work interference, parent–work interference, religion/spiritual–work interference, domestic–work interference, health, exhaustion, cognitive weariness, life satisfaction, dual earner parents Dual earner parents have become the norm in today’s workplace (Weigel, Weigel, Berger, Cook, & Delcampo, 1995). Dual earner parents face many challenging roles that they have to try to balance; these include being a parent, spouse, employee, being involved in religious practices and juggling domestic responsibilities. According to Duxbury and Higgins (1991), it is very difficult for such parents to balance their various roles and multiple demands. All these challenging demands (home characteristics) can cause nonwork–interference which can, in turn, lead to well–being problems (Magnus & Viswesvaran, 2005). The general objective of this study is to investigate the home characteristics, nonwork–work interference and well–being of a sample of dual earner parents. A convenience sample of dual earner parents (N=207) was taken in the Vaal Triangle area in Gauteng. The following scales was used within this study: the Home Demands Scale (Peeters et al., 2005), Home Resources Scale (Demerouti et al., 2010); the Work–nonwork Interference Scale (Koekemoer, Mostert, & Rothmann, 2010); the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ) (Goldberg, & Williams, 1988); and the OLBI (Oldenburg Burnout Inventory) Scale measuring exhaustion, Cognitive weariness (Van Horn et al., 2004); and life satisfaction (Diener et al., 1985). Descriptive statistics, Cronbach alpha coefficients, product moment correlations and multiple regression analyses were used to analyse the data. The results indicated that emotional home demands and lack of autonomy significantly predict physical ill health; emotional home demands and spouse–work interference significantly predict anxiety; and emotional home demands significantly predict depression. Gender, home pressure, developmental possibilities and parent–work interference were, in turn, significant predictors of exhaustion. Recommendations were made for future research and also, on a more practical level, for dual earner parents. One of the recommendations is that one needs to investigate the possible cross–over and spillover effects of work–nonwork interference between wives and husbands. Another is to investigate the positive side of work–nonwork interference. / Thesis (M.Com. (Industrial Psychology))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2012.

Emotional home demands, cognitive home demands, home pressure, development possibilities, autonomy, social support, nonwork–work interference, spouse–work interference, parent–work interference, religion/spiritual–work interference, domestic–work interference, health, exhaustion, cognitive weariness, life satisfaction, dual earner parents Dual earner parents have become the norm in today’s workplace (Weigel, Weigel, Berger, Cook, & Delcampo, 1995). Dual earner parents face many challenging roles that they have to try to balance; these include being a parent, spouse, employee, being involved in religious practices and juggling domestic responsibilities. According to Duxbury and Higgins (1991), it is very difficult for such parents to balance their various roles and multiple demands. All these challenging demands (home characteristics) can cause nonwork–interference which can, in turn, lead to well–being problems (Magnus & Viswesvaran, 2005). The general objective of this study is to investigate the home characteristics, nonwork–work interference and well–being of a sample of dual earner parents. A convenience sample of dual earner parents (N=207) was taken in the Vaal Triangle area in Gauteng. The following scales was used within this study: the Home Demands Scale (Peeters et al., 2005), Home Resources Scale (Demerouti et al., 2010); the Work–nonwork Interference Scale (Koekemoer, Mostert, & Rothmann, 2010); the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ) (Goldberg, & Williams, 1988); and the OLBI (Oldenburg Burnout Inventory) Scale measuring exhaustion, Cognitive weariness (Van Horn et al., 2004); and life satisfaction (Diener et al., 1985). Descriptive statistics, Cronbach alpha coefficients, product moment correlations and multiple regression analyses were used to analyse the data. The results indicated that emotional home demands and lack of autonomy significantly predict physical ill health; emotional home demands and spouse–work interference significantly predict anxiety; and emotional home demands significantly predict depression. Gender, home pressure, developmental possibilities and parent–work interference were, in turn, significant predictors of exhaustion. Recommendations were made for future research and also, on a more practical level, for dual earner parents. One of the recommendations is that one needs to investigate the possible cross–over and spillover effects of work–nonwork interference between wives and husbands. Another is to investigate the positive side of work–nonwork interference. / Thesis (M.Com. (Industrial Psychology))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2012.