*3.2. Labor Exploitation*

According to various accounts, labor exploitation and violations of current labor laws operate together with discrimination. In the Antofagasta region, there are sectors in which migrant workers are concentrated, such as domestic services, industrial cleaning, and working in the kitchens and waiting on tables in restaurants. In these positions, migrant women are preferred by employers, since they adapt to demands to meet their survival needs and the family commitments they have assumed. As a result, they are required or exposed to excessive work hours with low salaries and under worse conditions than Chileans who work in the same positions [10,27].

*I had to work for Doña Rosa even on Sundays—did you hear that? —For 7000 pesos (US \$9.45) per day that she was going to pay me but then never did; I ended up working for free.* [And you cannot report her?] *No; the money she said she would pay me; she says she already paid it to me. There is no point in confronting her.*

*And if I do other things, it's bad. If I go to work at a nightclub, it's bad. If I am a street vendor, too. What do I do? Because if I go to work at a store, they pay me 8000 (US \$10) for washing dishes all day.*

*Not even for 10,000 pesos (US \$13). But for 10,000 pesos, I will not work for anyone! No, I'm not going to break my back working. Start at eight in the morning, leave at six or seven in the afternoon. Breaking my back all day for that money? No!* (Tina, 43 years old)

It should be noted that discrimination is applied equally for most female immigrants.

*Well, on several occasions, I have been standing like this, taking the car, and one day some people called us "black", and I* . . . *I no longer know how God forgives. Get out of my country. I was with my daughter; we came from church. They do not know how we are (* . . . *) because some compatriots work in those places (of prostitution). We are not all [like that]. They believe that we are all equal, and we are all discriminated against for the same reason, we women, because we are Colombian (* . . . *) whether we are white or black, that all Colombians come to prostitute themselves, but no, it is not like that. Because we have some people who come to work honestly, right? For them to know us, they have to look at people* . . . *those who have come to prostitute themselves, and those who are honest, who work honestly.* (Yiam, 55 years old)

These prejudices and ethnic stereotypes fall mainly on Afro-Colombian women, who express feelings of being assaulted because of who they are. These conditions are not sufficient to avoid the humiliation and violence that they continue to experience during the process of labor integration. The experiences of Daysi and Mary illustrate this point:

*Getting a job is easier for women than for men in the sense that the trip to another country is easier than for men because women find work easier than men. He (her partner) does not leave Colombia. He has his son; well, he plays it safe, as they say there (to keep an* *ecologically stable place). He has a monthly pension. So, he is not going to retire from there to receive that money. I seek to improve my life.* (Daysi, 22 years old)

*Yes, you do not turn your nose up at it; there is more work for a woman because we can get involved in washing dishes, as a waitress in a hotel, taking care of children, washing bathrooms, whatever. This is not the case for men.* (Mary, 27 years old)

### *3.3. Being Self-Employed*

Some participants compared the situations of salaried work and self-employment. Their work is related to the informal sale of food. They risk being detained daily, along with fines and the loss of their investment if it is confiscated. The independence of working on their own, although it enables them to avoid being mistreated by an employer, brings with it vulnerability. For example, these informal independent workers do not have access to social assistance services (health benefits, pensions, housing loans, etc.) due to the lack of a contract. However, they achieve independence, which gives them feelings of satisfaction and dignity.

*I have all my credentials as an instructor, as a trainer, as a teacher; I have all my credentials, and I also have my degree, which I studied for in Colombia, in Cali. Terra Instituto de Cali; I finished. I have not been able to get a good job here.*

*I am a hairdresser. I studied manicures, pedicures, cutting and styling. All those things. I do have the papers for that.* [And what do you work on here?] *I sell potatoes.*

*She does that like that other girl who sells rice; she goes around with a supermarket cart. The police bother her at all hours because they know she is selling. One day, they threw away her food. They took away the breaded chickens, and the rice was thrown away. So, she lost her money, her invested money. Thank God, they have never taken it from me.* (Darlis, 41 years old)

Self-employment offers the women the advantages of managing their time and acquiring economic power and greater profits. However, they must accept and face the associated risks; thus, they are located in agency and in opposition to labor subordination. On the one hand, they are aware of the benefits they would have if their work were organized according to municipal and health regulations, but on the other, they avoid unequal interactions with employers who do not respect their labor rights.

*So, I work better with mine; I sell potatoes, and the money I earn is mine.*

*When I arrived, I worked in the Santa Isabel supermarket doing cleaning. They paid me 144,000 pesos. Imagine, what was that enough for? For nothing. (Selling potatoes), I earn more: my money to pay my rent, send to my children and survive.* (Estrellita, 35 years old)

As another point of tension, they must face the demands from immigration services, which indicate that they should not work because they do not meet the required length of stay in Chile. In this situation are women and their partners who have not been able to legalize their residence, but must nonetheless find a way to meet their day-to-day survival needs. Not only must they engage in informal work, but their lives are precarious, and they are trapped in feelings of anguish, hopelessness, anger, and injustice.

*The carabinieri cannot see me selling because [if they do], they chase you. Because you do not have permission to sell. However, I have been to the municipality several times, and they do not give permission to sell street food; they do not give permission. I have the final visa. What they take from you, they eat it; sometimes, they throw it away. That food has never hurt anyone. If I had hurt someone, then no, do not let us sell it. However, it is a very clean thing, very hygienic and all those things. This past week, the inspectors of the municipality took a part of my earnings. I have to go from Monday to Tuesday to pay there. I am looking for a venue, and I cannot find one. They are very expensive venues, a million and something. I cannot pay a million and something, no.*

*There was a girl who was pregnant, who was already ready; on these days, she gave birth here, in the hospital. Anderson (the father) was deported; he is still there in Colombia, and the woman stayed here. Well, she had her mother here, and she gave birth; the mother helped her, [and] they deported him. She was appealing and appealing, and they had not answered anything. She has sent papers because he had already paid for his resident card.* (Salomé, 43 years old)

### **4. Remittances Resulting from Work**

According to Benito [43], remittances increase family income, and constitute a source of poverty reduction. In developing countries, remittances provide support for family members who do not migrate, and are invested in education, health, and housing. This makes it possible to access better levels of education and health, and reduces the social vulnerability of family members, especially women and children; furthermore, it allows the children to achieve greater cultural capital in the long term, which can balance the deficiencies in the countries of origin caused by emigration. In 2006, remittances comprised 2.9% of Colombia's GDP (The Gross Domestic Product). In this way, the remittances sent by the interviewees improved the quality of life of their families in Colombia and increased their opportunities to study and have a better future. This, to some extent, compensates for the departure of Colombian nationals.

*I tell you that I live in the Pinares sector, Iquique Street. I have to pay remittances for my son and daughter, who are over there, and here, I have to pay 90,000 pesos a month in rent. An apartment, it has a bathroom. There is the kitchen; it is where we put the bed at night. The whole sky can be seen above, all hollow, all broken. When it rained, everything got wet. They charge the rent and do not fix anything for you. I live very badly. I am looking for an apartment or a little house. That neighborhood where I live is like the neighborhood of El Chavo—very ugly, very horrible house. Many people, many shacks.* (Daysi, 22 years old)

*Those of us who live there are almost all Colombians. There are Colombians, Peruvians, and Chileans. I have to live like this because most of what I earn, I send to my children and my mother, who takes care of them. Here where I am is the neighborhood of El Chavo. There are like 23 rooms, but we all get along well. Yes, the house is very large; we all live well there. The little house is ugly, they have it all ugly, but [it is] very, very quiet there. There are like four bathrooms shared for everything. My room is about this size, from here to there, the size of the living room; large. The lady pays for everything. That is, if she disconnects the light in one room, she only disconnects it there, not in the other rooms. So, she knows who owes* . . . *the lady pays for her water and electricity.* (Tolúa, 26 years old)

#### **5. Discussion**

In recent decades, countries receiving migrant women have seen an increase in the commercialization of domestic work. In recent years, Chile has become an emblematic example of a country that has a deficit of care workers and that, to meet these needs, has become a recipient of migrant workers to take over the work of social reproduction, which was previously occupied by mothers who were exclusively dedicated to domestic work.

Studies from the last decade in Latin America [10,44,45] have shown that the feminization of south-south migration is not solely the result of economic problems in the society of origin or the gaps in certain sectors (childcare, elderly care, home care, etc.) of the destination society. In Latin America, this mobility of women can also be understood as part of the normative changes in the gender order through which women have been constructing subjectivity in contemporary societies. Acosta [44] states that migratory models among Latin American migrant women are highly diverse, and range from migration focused on the family to migration defined according to the individual expectations of the migrant woman [44,45].

Regarding the valuation of migrant women's labor potential, Fraser [46] links tensions to the field of recognition, arguing that gender refers to a two-dimensional social differentiation, a hybrid category that is simultaneously involved in the economic structure and the status of society. From the perspective of redistribution, gender can be approached as an organizing principle of the economic structure of society, while from the perspective of recognition, gender encodes cultural patterns of interpretation into social status. With Honneth [47], we can review the idea that the cultural valuation of specific capacities for success leads to the social demarcation of professions, and addresses the relationship between recognition and gender, evidencing the existence of prejudices regarding the capacities of women in the social construction of labor and professional fields. According to the author, in a hierarchy of social status, work activities that are predominantly practiced by women will tend to have decreased prestige and recognition, while those predominantly practiced by men will tend to have increased prestige and recognition, which explains the undervaluation of work that is primarily performed by women.

This situation has revived the exploited labor situation that had been disappearing in previous decades due to the massive entry of women into education, and their access to greater economic power [48,49]. Women had expanded their citizenship rights, and there was a clear resistance to subordination [39–50]. However, the emerging increase in female migration has unleashed a proliferation of precarious jobs, social discredit, low wages, lack of regulation, and invisibility for women who migrate [10,51], who, in turn, develop feelings of hopelessness and anguish for both themselves and their children.

The precariousness of migrant women is intertwined with institutional deficiencies, prejudices, and stereotypes; inefficient regulations, as well as a weak political will to improve immigration processes. Migrant women are exposed to work without a contract, abuse by employers, and the risk of labor exploitation. These experiences are also associated, in many cases, with feelings of insecurity caused by procedural factors because of delays between decisions and the issuing of official papers that result in missed deadlines.

It was observed that some women do not report abuses due to ignorance of their options, lack of accurate information, and emotional factors, such as the fear that they, and not their employers, will be sanctioned; therefore, labor abuse in the private spaces of the power relationship between employee and employer is invisible. It was observed that among employers that exploit Afro-Colombian women, there are Chilean men and women who take advantage of migrant women's desperation in relation to labor insertion and the low level of prestige that female domestic work has, which leads to an association with low pay and decreased respect for and symbolic value of the person who performs it.

These attitudes, which are intertwined with xenophobia, are found in all socioeconomic levels of the population, and feed a perverse circle, falling as they do on both migrant women and on Chilean women who perform the same work. Women in both groups are hindered in accessing economic capital; they face restricted opportunities to incorporate cultural capital, and are limited and trapped in fields with less symbolic capital because they are migrant women, of African descent, and are considered displaced (however, this is less true for Chilean women, who have achieved greater protection of their rights, and therefore are exposed to less discrimination than migrant women).

Some limitations of the study can be found in that the interviewees belong to a medium-low socioeconomic level where the research was focused, leaving out the work experiences of women with more resources. Regarding the experience of researching in this field, the team allowed it to open a comprehensive line of community work, guiding collaboration groups with greater clarity on the needs of the migrant population, such as prevention of violence, sexual body self-care, among others. We received very significant feedback that was recorded in the documentary produced with a joint script.

Figure 4 below shows a synthesis of the analytical process that helped to answer the initial questions from an intersectional and gender perspective, articulating the processes of insertion of Colombian women into an androcentric context that hypervalues whitened skin and its European ethnic associations over Caribbean and Latin American appearances. These predominant cultural characteristics in the country of arrival (Chile), with respect to Afro-Colombian women, generate attitudes laden with symbolic violence, which makes it difficult for the participating women to achieve dignified labor insertion with respect to their basic human rights. In contrast, their arrival in Chile was marked by tension, and they have experienced situations that have generated painful emotions (illustrated in Figure 3). ances. These predominant cultural characteristics in the country of arrival (Chile), with respect to Afro‐Colombian women, generate attitudes laden with symbolic violence, which makes it difficult for the participating women to achieve dignified labor insertion with respect to their basic human rights. In contrast, their arrival in Chile was marked by tension, and they have experienced situations that have generated painful emotions (il‐ lustrated in Figure 3).

of insertion of Colombian women into an androcentric context that hypervalues whitened skin and its European ethnic associations over Caribbean and Latin American appear‐

cause they are migrant women, of African descent, and are considered displaced (how‐ ever, this is less true for Chilean women, who have achieved greater protection of their

Some limitations of the study can be found in that the interviewees belong to a me‐ dium‐low socioeconomic level where the research was focused, leaving out the work ex‐ periences of women with more resources. Regarding the experience of researching in this field, the team allowed it to open a comprehensive line of community work, guiding col‐ laboration groups with greater clarity on the needs of the migrant population, such as prevention of violence, sexual body self‐care, among others. We received very significant

Figure 4 below shows a synthesis of the analytical process that helped to answer the

rights, and therefore are exposed to less discrimination than migrant women).

feedback that was recorded in the documentary produced with a joint script.

*Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health* **2021**, *18*, x 12 of 16

**Figure 4.** Emerging Analysis Model. Source: Own elaboration. **Figure 4.** Emerging Analysis Model. Source: Own elaboration.

#### *Emerging Emotions Emerging Emotions*

Emotional expression comprises a symbolic structure that is articulated from the dy‐ namics between the individual's experience in daily life and the normative and gender order that have has culturally constructed to regulate these experiences (see Figure 5). Emotional expression comprises a symbolic structure that is articulated from the dynamics between the individual's experience in daily life and the normative and gender order that have has culturally constructed to regulate these experiences (see Figure 5). That is, as we have explained in the analysis of the narrated experiences, these processes are required conditions for understanding the sources of these women's emotions, associating their emotional experiences with the framework of the culture of origin and the culture of arrival and, as stated at beginning the of this article, identifying the ways in which their emotions are embodied to serve as a link between individual experience and the subject's *Verstehen* of the reality that they discover.

In this context, we find that many women travel to Chile with high expectations. Upon arrival, they are faced with a reality that generates contradictory emotions, such as feelings of regret that are aggravated by the impossibility of returning to their country of origin due to the economic risks that they assumed when they migrated. The interviewees expressed longing for their country of origin, and constant comparisons between Chile and Colombia characterized by a greater appreciation of their native country. According to Julve et al. [52], the existence of a positive memory of the country of origin arises from mourning for the loss of proximity to customs, land, and contact with their own ethnic group, among other factors that influence perceptions regarding the place of origin and the

receiving country. In this sense, Restrepo [53] points out that in Spain, immigrant women also express generalized feelings of nostalgia for the better housing conditions in Colombia. A more favorable memory of their past life reflects the pain of being uprooted. In this sense, housing not only represents a change in infrastructure conditions, for better or for worse, but also a void with respect to social and cultural relations [52]. ciating their emotional experiences with the framework of the culture of origin and the culture of arrival and, as stated at beginning the of this article, identifying the ways in which their emotions are embodied to serve as a link between individual experience and the subject's *Verstehen* of the reality that they discover.

That is, as we have explained in the analysis of the narrated experiences, these processes are required conditions for understanding the sources of these women's emotions, asso‐

*Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health* **2021**, *18*, x 13 of 16

**Figure 5.** Emerging emotions. Source: Own elaboration. **Figure 5.** Emerging emotions. Source: Own elaboration.

In this context, we find that many women travel to Chile with high expectations. Upon arrival, they are faced with a reality that generates contradictory emotions, such as feelings of regret that are aggravated by the impossibility of returning to their country of origin due to the economic risks that they assumed when they migrated. The interviewees expressed longing for their country of origin, and constant comparisons between Chile and Colombia characterized by a greater appreciation of their native country. According to Julve et al. [52], the existence of a positive memory of the country of origin arises from mourning for the loss of proximity to customs, land, and contact with their own ethnic group, among other factors that influence perceptions regarding the place of origin and Chile must address immigration in two fundamental ways. First, it must define how it will face migratory flows from other countries and clarify what type of border opening will be the most appropriate for the coming years. Second, the government should specify how it will manage its internal policies or propose the creation of new policies regarding the treatment of undocumented immigrants who enter and settle in Chile [54], especially given the repercussions that such regulations have on the beliefs of nationals. In addition, the adopted decisions must be consistent with agreements that have already been signed with the constitutional regulations, and the way in which they are expressed in the education of Chileans. As the interviewees reported, there is a greater emphasis on the preparation of intellectuals than on implementing integration policies.

the receiving country. In this sense, Restrepo [53] points out that in Spain, immigrant women also express generalized feelings of nostalgia for the better housing conditions in Colombia. A more favorable memory of their past life reflects the pain of being uprooted. In this sense, housing not only represents a change in infrastructure conditions, for better or for worse, but also a void with respect to social and cultural relations [52]. Chile must address immigration in two fundamental ways. First, it must define how it will face migratory flows from other countries and clarify what type of border opening As Larraín points out that, when "national identity is not defined as an unchangeable essence, but rather as a permanent historical process of construction and reconstruction of the 'imagined community' that is the nation, then the alterations that occur in its constituent elements do not necessarily imply that national identity has been lost, but rather that it has changed, that it is being built" [42]. The reconstruction of national identity must incorporate the presence of people of other nationalities who have come to stay, and to increase the national cultural heritage, enriching it with greater variety.

how it will manage its internal policies or propose the creation of new policies regarding the treatment of undocumented immigrants who enter and settle in Chile [54], especially given the repercussions that such regulations have on the beliefs of nationals. In addition, the adopted decisions must be consistent with agreements that have already been signed **Author Contributions:** Conceptualization, methodology, formal analysis, writing—original draft preparation, investigation, review, and editing, J.S.S. and E.C.R.; writing—review and editing, funding acquisition, and project administration, J.S.S.; writing—review and editing, J.S.S. and E.C.R. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.

will be the most appropriate for the coming years. Second, the government should specify

with the constitutional regulations, and the way in which they are expressed in the edu‐ cation of Chileans. As the interviewees reported, there is a greater emphasis on the prep‐ aration of intellectuals than on implementing integration policies. **Funding:** This research was funded by the National Fund for Scientific and Technologic Development of Chile, FONDECYT 1180079. (With appreciation, this work has been conducted with the support of Fondecyt (the National Fund for Scientific and Technological Development) Project 1180079).

As Larraín points out that, when "national identity is not defined as an unchangeable essence, but rather as a permanent historical process of construction and reconstruction of the 'imagined community' that is the nation, then the alterations that occur in its con‐ **Institutional Review Board Statement:** The study was conducted according to the guidelines of the Declaration of Helsinki and approved by the Institutional Review Board (or Ethics Committee) of CONICYT (approval date, March 2018).

stituent elements do not necessarily imply that national identity has been lost, but rather that it has changed, that it is being built" [42]. The reconstruction of national identity must **Informed Consent Statement:** Informed consent was obtained from all subjects involved in the study.

incorporate the presence of people of other nationalities who have come to stay, and to increase the national cultural heritage, enriching it with greater variety. **Data Availability Statement:** The data supporting the findings of this study are available on re-quest from the corresponding author (J.S.S., FONDECYT 1180079). The data are not publicly available, due to their containing information that could compromise the privacy of research participants.

**Acknowledgments:** The authors acknowledge FONDECYT 1180079. (The research team is made up of J.S.S., PhD in gender anthropology, with a degree in social psychology, who coordinated the field research, participated in the organization of the central axes of the interviews, interviewed, and jointly analyzed the narrative corpus of the participating women. About this line of research: Afro-descendant migration has published in mainstream books and magazines. The field work for contacts with institutions and groups of migrants has been carried out by E.C.R. with a degree in Psychology, with intensive training in human rights and gender, who participated in the analysis and synthesis of findings. During the process of organizing the analytical corpus, 2 students in psychology practice participated under the supervision of J.S.S.).

**Conflicts of Interest:** The authors declare no conflict of interest.
