What question did this study set out to answer?

The research aims to explore the experiences and agency of migrant domestic workers during the COVID-19 pandemic.

February 20, 2026Work Organisation Labour & Globalisation2 citationsOpen Access

Beyond victimhood: The agency of migrant domestic workers during the COVID-19 pandemic

MCMyrian CarbajalHES-SO University of Applied Sciences and Arts Western Switzerland EGEmma GauttierHES-SO University of Applied Sciences and Arts Western Switzerland CMChristina MittmasserHES-SO University of Applied Sciences and Arts Western Switzerland

Key Points

The research aims to explore the experiences and agency of migrant domestic workers during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Conducted 49 interviews with migrant domestic workers in four Swiss cantons
Analyzed the impact of legal status and employment conditions on agency
Examined media portrayals and their societal implications
Migrant domestic workers displayed varying degrees of agency in coping with hardship
Structural vulnerabilities influenced their ability to manage risks
Media narratives often misrepresented their realities as solely victimization.

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic severely impacted the livelihoods of migrant domestic workers (MDWs), many of whom were undocumented and informally employed. In Switzerland, media portrayals of these women as destitute victims exposed them to social risks. This article challenges such representations by emphasising their varied experiences and social positions. Based on 49 interviews with MDWs in four Swiss cantons, we discuss how intersecting structural vulnerabilities associated with legal status and employment conditions shaped the exercise of critical agency. In this way, MDWs were able to cope with hardship and manage risks while constructing their subjectivities in alignment with or in opposition to prevailing discourses.

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