Precarious Care
East European Female Migrants in Home Care for the Elderly
Deutsche Fassung
Abstract
In Europe, more and more people are reaching old age and are in need of care in their last years of life. At the same time, more and more women are joining the workforce. The need for care has risen, and the potential for care from within the family has declined. In Italy, Austria, and Germany, the gap has been filled in recent years by female migrant workers from Eastern Europe in particular. Their working conditions are precarious, frequently even illegal. Several countries are showing that, with a different approach to care policy and a less restrictive migration policy, there are alternatives: The expansion of formal care services facilitates access to the regular job market for female migrants.
(Osteuropa 5/2010, pp. 117–130)