Process of (Re)Organization of Productive and Reproductive Work of Women in Confection

Abstract

Objective: this article analyzed how women who own a clothing business in the Agreste region of Pernambuco (re)organized their productive and reproductive work in the private space of their homes, taking into account gender relations. Theoretical framework: it is based on the discussion about the sexual division of labor, the dynamics of conciliation between public and private spaces, the triple shift, and the insertion of women in the labor market, based on the problems they face. Method: a qualitative descriptive approach was used, with 23 semi-structured interviews. Results: findings point out that having their own business at home generates a false impression of flexibility for women; the owners’ work routine is exhaustive and with the accumulation of productive and reproductive activity intertwined in the same space, generating triple shifts and precarious working conditions; the financial emancipation of women who work in clothing occurs from the (re)organization of their functions in the private environment of the home, diverging from the literature that relates their autonomy to entering the public environment of the labor market; and informality, typical of the region, favors the entry of the interviewees into the clothing sector, but deprives them of access to social security. Conclusion: the theoretical contributions reveal that women do not necessarily need to leave the private space to enter the productive work world and achieve a certain emancipation, as they manage to do this from the (re)organization of productive work in the home environment itself.