Maid in Rio

Although there is a lot of talk and excitement in the global media about the strength of Brazil’s economy, I am often told by Brazilians “Don’t forget, this is a third world country!”. This is usually said while they are bemoaning a woe of the city (traffic jams, poor public transport, etc) that they assume is absent in more developed countries. In many cases I can truthfully tell them that we have the exact same problem back in ‘first world’ Britain!

Moving in different directions – Brazil’s booming economy is reflected in falling unemployment levels. However, 26% of Brazil’s population is considered to be living in poverty, compared to 14% in the UK and 12% in the US. Figures from: http://www.indexmundi.com/

Whether Brazil is third world or not and regardless of the economic outlook, there is still a huge disparity in wealth distribution. This, in part, explains the prevalence of middle class families employing maids. Although I had some experience of this during the time I spent in Africa, it is something I’ve never felt 100% comfortable with. Of course it provides employment for people who haven’t had the education to work in jobs that require qualifications. And I even had a cleaner for a few months when I was living in London. So what is my problem?

Many younger Brazilians say there is still an attitude of Casa-Grande e Senzala in some circles. Meaning something like “The Master’s house and the slave huts”, this is a reference to a book written by Gilberto Freyre in 1933, which looks at the Brazilian culture of the wealthy land-owner and the poor slaves (later workers). Even today in Rio, many people will expect builders or cleaners to use different toilets and drink from different glasses.

When searching for a new apartment here in Zona Sul, I noticed that many of the properties I saw had a tiny, windowless room coming off the kitchen. I was told that these rooms (most only just large enough for a bed) were built specifically to accommodate a maid. I have no idea how many of these are actually used – perhaps most people use them as storage space nowadays, but nevertheless, I find these tiny quartos de empragadas (maids’ rooms) unsettling.

Quartinho de empregada – elevated design view of a maid’s room. At least this one has a window!

And it was, until recently, quite common for a wealthy family to take in a girl as young as 10 from Brazil’s impoverished North East. The young girl would not become just another member of the family – she would carry out household duties such as cooking, cleaning and child-minding and in return (as well as a salary) her education would be paid for. The original family would willingly give over their child to a ‘better life’ and the wealthy family would feel they were doing a good deed.

I’m sure there are plenty of examples of this arrangement working out brilliantly for everyone, but I know of several where the young girl received no education and was effectively consigned to a lifetime of working as a maid. I’m told that although this practice doesn’t happen much in Rio anymore, it is still quite common in the northern states.

This is a really difficult, sensitive subject and I am wary of bringing my first world judgements to this, a developing country. It is important to look at the reality of people’s lives, rather than simply passing judgement on the basis that I’d rather it wasn’t like this. And as a European I have to remember that the actions of my country and it’s wealthy neighbours over the past 500 years played a huge part in putting Brazil (and many other countries) into the position they currently find themselves.

As with many complicated issues, this one isn’t clear cut. Although some maids barely make minimum wage, some get good benefits (medical, dental, etc) and are paid very well – wages are on the rise and top maids often have maids of their own! And it is important to remember that without good child-minding options it would be impossible for both parents (or a single parent) to work – a choice available to many people with children in developed countries.

Nevertheless, I was pleased to see recent stories from the BBC and New York Times, telling of a changing situation in Brazil, where an improving education system is giving would-be maids new employment opportunities and a better chance to work their way into Brazil’s rapidly expanding middle class. In 2002 Brazil was ranked 4th in the list of countries with large gaps between rich and poor – by 2007 they were 11th. This may mean that more Brazilians will have to learn to clean their own houses and cook their own meals, but surely it is a good thing if they want to drop the ‘third world’ label forever.