2011–2012
ERSTE Foundation Fellowship for Social Research Should we stay or should we go? Migration and its effects on demographic and economic development in Central Eastern Europe
Ageing, Care and Migration Petra Ezzeddine
Petra Ezzeddine: Aging, Care, and Migration
Aging, Care, and Migration  Â
Introduction Hired domestic and care workers, a form of employment that seemed to be on the verge of disappearance in modern society, increasingly provide a private solution to a public problem. Migrant women who provide care work, for instance, leave their own homes to work because they perceive this as the only way to sustain their families (Ezzeddine, 2009). Thus, contemporary social organization of care is systematically connected to the global economy and social inequality. Changing family relations, increasing women’s participation in the labour market, and alternate lifestyles converge with European demographic trends of aging and with institutional trends of the weakening Western welfare state and rising neo-liberal globalisation (Kofman, 1999).Care work activities have been integrated to some extent into the system of other institutionalized and regulated activities in the labor market, but with the exploitative conditions of low status, low pay, and precarious situations. Contemporary Czech Republic is in the process of transforming its social system, which is incapable of providing adequate care for its senior citizens. In recent years, we have witnessed an increased number of mediating agencies that import mainly Ukrainian migrants for the purpose of engaging them in elderly care work . Once I realized that this is a new, unexplored phenomenon, I decided to conduct a pilot ethnographic research study. The aims of this research paper are (a) to examine the commodification of elderly care work, and (b) to analyze the nature of care work provided by female Ukrainian migrants in the Czech Republic. For my analysis of elderly care work provided by Ukrainian migrants, I will focus on the social situation of care work the participants involved. I decided to conduct semistructured interviews with twelve female Ukrainian migrants who work as caregivers, twelve employers of caregivers (mostly the children of care-receivers), and three owners of agencies that represent elderly care workers. After a lengthy decision-making process
Petra Ezzeddine: Aging, Care, and Migration (which hinged on ethical concerns about research and the selected methodology), I also chose to conduct interviews with three people receiving care from Ukrainian caregivers in order to contextualize the remaining data. To gain a better understanding of the research problem, I also analyzed agency websites and promotional materials. I was also allowed to study the work contracts of the caregivers. My research was conducted in a metropolitan area of Prague. In keeping with research ethics, all research participants and agencies shall remain anonymous.
1. Contemporary trends of Ukrainian migration to the Czech Republic
To foster a better understanding of my ethnographic data, I will focus in this chapter on an analysis of gender in regards to contemporary trends of Ukrainian migration to the Czech Republic. Studies characterize Ukrainian migration to the Czech Republic as an economic migration (Drbohlav 2001, Uherek 2003). Leontyeva states: "The prevailing poor economic situation of Ukraine, the geographical proximity, and relatively small linguistic and cultural barriers are the main reasons behind the fact that Ukrainians currently represent the largest group of economic migrants in the CR, while the temporary labour migration of Ukrainians to the Czech Republic has for several years and gradually begun to have the character of permanent migration" (2006:33). It is important to note that the descendants of the earlier waves of migration, who are associated in expatriate communities with the Czech Republic, try to distance themselves from the newly arrived economic migrants (Drbohlav, Ezzeddine 2004). Throughout the last decade, the migration zone has shifted east, and currently people from the central and even eastern parts of Ukraine also travel to the Czech Republic to earn money. The geographic closeness of Ukraine to the Czech Republic means that male and female migrants tend to choose circular migration. Leontyeva (2006:35) explains that “[t]he
Petra Ezzeddine: Aging, Care, and Migration physically demanding work conditions and often disastrous residential-stay circumstances of the Ukrainian so-called 'gastarbeiters' can cause a feeling of alienation, and the desire to earn the necessary amount of money quickly and then return home, where their families, relatives, and friends are waiting. But shortly after their return, economic problems often occur. This is also influenced by high unemployment and, therefore, repeating the ‘work trip‘ is often considered to be the only possible solution." In fact, the more time migrants spend circulating, the more they tend to settle down and relocate their nuclear families (Ezzeddine, Kocourek 2006). Ukrainians in the Czech Republic, like other foreigners, are concentrated in Prague and other large cities. The reason for this specific concentration is work opportunities in the construction and car industries (for male migrants) and in the service sector and light industry (for females). As Uherek states (2001), this concentration does not indicate a tendency to force Ukrainians into ghettos or to create ethnic enclaves. In the case of the metropolitan area of Prague, concentration is the result of affordable hostels and cheap housing sublets on the outskirts of the capital, not an effort on the part of migrants to live near their compatriots (Drbohlav, Ezzeddine 2004). According to Czech official statistics, the Ukrainians in the Czech Republic are the second largest migratory group1. By November 31, 2011, about 106,040 Ukrainians lived in the Czech Republic. Trying to characterize the educational and professional qualifications of Ukrainian immigrants on the basis of existing research is quite difficult. On the one hand, partial studies (Drbohlav, 2008, Gabal Consulting 2007) show that Ukrainian economic migrants have what are considered good educational backgrounds and strong professional qualifications in their country of origin, but they place low on the Czech Republic’s segmented labor market. On the other hand, some representative studies (Horáková and Čerňanská 2001) insist that we cannot speak in terms of above-average education regarding the Ukrainian labor migrants when only 12 percent have a university education. Inaccurate estimation of the educational qualifications of male and female migrants from Ukraine, according to Leontyeva (2006:34), are due to “the subjective inaccuracies of the testimony of the respondents. Here, we must take into account both the subjective evaluation of their education and, 1
http://www.czso.cz/csu/cizinci.nsf/kapitola/ciz_pocet_cizincu
Petra Ezzeddine: Aging, Care, and Migration conversely, its secrecy and deliberate underestimation due to concerns about being ‘too’ qualified to perform an unskilled job.” Research shows (Gabal Consulting, 2007) that although the Czech environment is linguistically and culturally close to that of Ukrainian migrants, migrants often do not understand Czech laws and institutions. The social capital necessary for life in migration is not, in their case, gained through kinship ties, but instead is purchased via intermediary agencies that have contacts with employers, hostels, or officials. These agencies also offer knowledge about laws and Czech language. Such cultural capital becomes a commodity for which immigrants pay. Due to the previously described information asymmetry, the migrants agree to the agency rules. These agencies were used as an information source by 30 percent of Ukrainian men and 13 percent of Ukrainian. This gender disparity in the use of intermediary agencies is due to the aforementioned professional segmentation in the Czech labor market. It is also important to note the significant number of Ukrainian migrants participating in the illegal sector. This high representation, Leontyeva argues (2007:35), is due to the bureaucratic process of applying for work permits and visas. A lack of comprehensible information “pushes Ukrainian workers to often prefer a simpler way of earning money. The hierarchically-built network of brokers and various entrepreneurs usually behave like parasites on this, and they steal from even the less well-off, illegally-employed Ukrainians. What also contributes to that is the high demand for cheap labor in the construction field and the lack of sanctions against those who employ illegal workers in the destination country - the Czech Republic. The studies (Drbohlav, Ezzeddine 2007; Leontyeva 2006) show that, since 1989, masses mainly of men of productive age (with their own nuclear family left behind) travel from Ukraine to the Czech Republic. They mostly come alone in order to earn a living for their families or close relatives, who remain at home. However, in the last five years we are seeing an increase in female migration, which means the difference between numbers of male and female migrants is continuously decreasing. In 2009, Ukrainian women made up 42 percent of the total number of Ukrainian migrants in the Czech republic (Foreigners in Czech Republic, 2009). Family studies (Ezzeddine, Kocourek 2006, Gabal Consulting 2007) show that 70 percent of male and female Ukrainians in the Czech Republic live
Petra Ezzeddine: Aging, Care, and Migration without their children. This makes them the largest group of transnational parents living and working in the Czech Republic.
2. Migrant care work as a product (commoditization of care work) “... then we decided to hire Yelena. We started to search on the internet. Who, what and for what price?" (Blanka, employer)
According to Hooyman and Kiyak (2011: 394), “whether informal or formal, [caregiving] denotes supportive, nonmedical, mostly low-tech services such as help with bathing or eating, and some medical services such as administering medications and attending to surgical wounds." In this way, agencies that mediate jobs sell care work to their clients (families who hire caregivers to take care of their parents and their relatives). My research shows that they combine to form a specific “product” of care. I will argue here that this specific product – the female Ukrainian caregiver – is a result of the intersection of gender, ethnicity and migration. I will investigate each category in detail.
2.1. Gender
As my research shows, care work for the elderly in the household is a reproduction of traditional gender norms. In spite of it being a physically demanding job, the expectation is that a woman will do it. Bridget Anderson (2000:113) argues that “[p]aid domestic workers reproduce people and social relations not just in what they do (polishing silver, ironing), but also in the very doing of it (the foil to the household manager). In this respect, the paid domestic worker is herself, in her very essence, a means of reproduction. The care of the sick and the elderly has an intimate character. As physical hygiene is
Petra Ezzeddine: Aging, Care, and Migration considered a part of the care procedure, it is closely associated with the body and embodiment. Based on interviews with families and agencies, I believe that this is the primary reason why people choose female caregivers. As Gregson and Lowe stated, “Employers want more than labor power. They often openly stipulate that they want a particular type of person, justifying this demand on the grounds that they will be working at home" (1994:3). As my analysis shows, agencies construct an ideal type of person, whose characteristics include typically feminine qualities: loyalty, willingness, diligence, and empathy. Websites and marketing materials support this stereotype by using images of stylized, slender, smiling, and attractive caregivers dressed in bright medical uniforms. Clients – namely the families who order this service for their relatives – have also confirmed in interviews what general characteristics they imagine in a caregiver. These were mainly trust, loyalty, discretion, willingness, diligence, cleanliness, and empathy. Jiřina’s description of an ideal caregiver is a good example: “Well, she must be a sensitive woman. Helpful and kind. They should not be scruffy, but must be careful. And I have to trust her because my mother has valuable things at home.” The maternal character of this type of work is also based on the age of Ukrainian migrants. All my informants were women with maternal experience, and their ages ranged between 30 – 45 years. Motherhood seemed enhance their qualification for this type of work. "They are simply experienced women, mothers from families. They know how to take care of the household and they are strong women who know how to work hard.”
(Agency 2) But the flip side of motherhood in this case is its form: “Transnational mothers bring a
Petra Ezzeddine: Aging, Care, and Migration new dimension to the quality of motherhood, new inequality, and a new meaning of the family” (Sotelo 2001:16). Transnational mothers are responsible for the maintenance of their nuclear and extended families back home in Ukraine. As my previous research with transnational Ukrainian mothers shows, female migrants experience feelings of guilt that they “failed” to fulfill the social expectation of intensive motherhood (Ezzeddine 2011). “This life here is not easy, neither the work, nor the fact that you are far away from your children. You feel sad, but you do the job for them. Every mother wants the best for her kids.” (Irina, female Ukrainian migrant) “The hardest thing for me is that I am far away from my family and kids. It is true that they are now teenagers, but I miss them. I say to myself that I have to withstand the loneliness. Because of that they have better life.” (Oxana, female Ukrainian migrant)
Ukrainian transnational mothers choose The Czech Republic as their destination for work migration primarily because it is possible, due to the geographical distance, to conduct a circular migration between the two countries. On the one hand, the mobility between life “here” and “there” gives Ukrainian mothers the ability to coordinate productive work. On the other hand, they are “trapped” in the net of unqualified work, and it is hard for them to obtain a stable job position (Ezzeddine 2011). The position of female Ukrainian immigrants in the Czech labor market is another reason why this type of work is so gendered. Professional segmentation is obvious when male migrants are employed mainly in construction and industry, and women in the service sector (Ezzeddine, Kocourek 2007). This is closely linked to another problem for female migrant workers (and not only those from Ukraine): non–compliance of gender equality in the Czech labor market. Employed female migrants stated that they earn approximately a quarter less than men, which results
Petra Ezzeddine: Aging, Care, and Migration in a dramatic difference in both social rank and salary size (Gabal Consulting 2007). The caregivers I interviewed confirmed this unequal situation. They described it as the main reason to seek a job in the field of domestic care:
“Here, a woman from Ukraine has not much choice. She will either work hard for little money as an auxiliary force in the restaurant, or somewhere as a maid. She always earns less than our guys. And less than Czechs. We do jobs that others don’t want to do. Care work is at least well paid, although it is sometimes hard work.” (Yana, female Ukrainian migrant)
2. 2. Migration Residence permits for foreigners in the Czech Republic require a valid employment contract. If an economic migrant suddenly loses her job and is unable to find another one quickly, she must leave the country. This results in a strong dependence on her employer or agency (Tollarová 2006). On this topic, my Ukrainian informants expressed feelings of insecurity, fear, and anxiety about the future. If confronted by problems in the course of their work (such as an employer not respecting the limits of working hours, or an unexpected change in job description) without a way to negotiate with clients through the agencies, they considered other options for their stay abroad. Since most women I surveyed have nuclear families – especially children – that depend on remittances they send to Ukraine, there was more pressure to stay in degrading working conditions. “It is a problem: when you lose your job, you have to find another one quickly. If you don’t find one, you lose your residence permit. You suddenly rethink that, now it is harder to find a job because of the crisis. The whole family in Ukraine is waiting for my money. I am a widow, and so I am responsible for them. Then of course you try to negotiate.”
( Natasha, female Ukrainian migrant )
Petra Ezzeddine: Aging, Care, and Migration “In the first family I was responsible for a very hard case. It was a case of dementia, aggressive grandfather, poor guy…well, I really didn’t manage that physically and psychologically. Yeah, but the agency did not have anything else to offer me. So I had to stand and wait. In this in turn they helped me, they are polite people. But normally you would have left. But I can’t do that. I am a foreigner and this is a problem.”
(Yelena, female Ukrainian migrant)
The system of legalizing the stay of migrants in the Czech Republic is complicated, which leads to a combination of legal and illegal practices. It is important to remember that, in the Czech Republic, it is very hard for a family to employ nationals of third countries to work in private households. Agencies use this fact to their benefit and seduce clients with the promise of legalizing their residence. The following excerpt from the website of the Agency Number 1 illustrates this strategy:
“YY (name of the agency) can ease for you all the administrative work that is linked with the legalizing of your helper. If you are interested, we can help you and minimize the unpleasant and lengthy arranging.”
Agency work is not necessarily an adequate solution for female migrants. The problem of employing migrants in the Czech Republic is the complicated system of legalizing the residency status, which leads to the combination of legal and illegal practices. Regarding the situation of working migrants in the Czech Republic, Jacob Hurrle claims that “the problem of the current system is the ‘production’ of illegality: it is very easy for a migrant to turn into a person who behaves illegally, for example due to minor administrative problems. In many cases migrants are not aware of this because they are ‘administered’ by intermediaries" (Hurrle 2011:5)
2.3. Ethnicity
Petra Ezzeddine: Aging, Care, and Migration
Our research on the internal barriers in the Czech labor market (Ezzeddine, Kocourek 2007) showed that Ukrainian migrants (male and female), more so than Vietnamese migrants (male and female), perceive their ethnicity as a barrier in the labour market. I suggest that there are multiple reasons for this negative evaluation. First, Ukrainian migrants come into close contact with Czech subordinates as employees. Secondly, compared to Vietnamese migrants, they do not move in closed communities. Thirdly, they are not considered different by the mainstream society. Fourthly, they move from one post-socialist country to another. The female Ukrainian migrants in my research also talked about feeling like second-class citizens due to their ethnicity, especially during conflicts with clients and their families.
“The old man thought that he was missing some cash, so he started shouting at me that I am that Ukrainian thief, that we shouldn’t be trusted. So, with his daughter, we searched the whole house and found it in the bathroom. He forgot it there. He is sick, but it is not nice that he curses me as a filthy Ukrainian woman.” ( Irina, female Ukrainian migrant)
“I changed the workplace. In the previous place, they thought that if they hire a Ukrainian woman, she will work there as a horse. No free time, and they did not abide by the contract. After that, they said to me that as Ukrainian I have to be glad that I live in "civilization.” And I am from Lvov!” (Yelena, female Ukrainian migrant) But ethnicity paradoxically favors them on the Czech care labor market. Owners of the agencies that employ them stress the benefit of their ethnicity and membership in a Slavic ethnic group, since they are more culturally familiar and more affordable than other types of domestic care.
“Originally, we wanted to apply the Israeli model and bring Filipino women here. We
Petra Ezzeddine: Aging, Care, and Migration were surprised that there was no interest in them. People here are still xenophobic; they fear anything new. So, we shifted to Ukrainian women who learn Czech fast, look the same as Czechs, and understand the life here.”(Agency 1)
“Ukrainian women are like us. No problem. They can speak the language, it is simply the same. Old people are conservative and it is hard for them to get used to someone who is not from their family. This job presents a big penetration to the privacy.” (Agency 2) “Some want only Czech women, but they are simply cheaper. And this is what wins. There is hard competition, even in this business!” (Agency 3) It is important to note that agency advertisements do not target potential clients (families buying care for their elderly relatives) by offering them Ukrainian caregivers (even if they mediate work for female Ukrainian migrants). Agencies use the terms "foreign female domestic worker" or "foreign female caregivers."
3. Care work for elderly people – inside the job 3.1. Care work as a family issue I observed in my research the gendered culture of family care. Researchers who suggest that there are specific characteristics of women as caregivers are basing this on their feelings and psychological responsibility. We should not exclude men from the profession. Men tend to focus more on sporadic task-house maintenance, financial management, and occasional shopping (Hooyaman and Kiyak 2011: 402): "Sons are more likely to adopt an attitude of 'you do what you have to do' and use a 'work' paradigm in approaching care giving." But compared to female caregivers, they provide less personal care, such as bathing, dressing, etc.
Petra Ezzeddine: Aging, Care, and Migration The decision to involve people outside the family – in these cases, female foreign migrants – in the care process was motivated by more than one factor. The first is the inability to link one's job with the coordination of elderly care. Although the Czech social policy officially proclaims the importance of family care, the reality is more complex. Helena, who employs a female Ukrainian migrant for her father, expounds upon this: "I’d love to take care of my mother by myself, if there is a possibility to work for fewer hours and get good money. But if I do not go to work, I cannot support and feed my family from the social benefits only, because the children are still studying. And what kind of pension will I have then? I can’t do that, certainly not in this period." Contemporary Czech families depend on the wages of both partners. This is the main reason why female caregivers are trying to coordinate their productive activities with caregiving. My research shows that some women have tried to implement a flexible coordination of work and care. However, they find this problematic. Jitka, who took care of her mother after a stroke, is an example of this: "I managed to arrange things at work, but it was difficult. You are at work for only four hours, but then you fly back home where someone who needs care is waiting for you. You have to practice with her the speaking and walking therapy, taking her out for a walk. Then you have to cook, clean… then again there comes the children who are waiting for you at home, and you have to take care of them, too. I was very tired. Every morning I take care of my mother until the time when Oxana comes. She stays with her for four hours, takes her out, practices with her. She cooks for the whole family and cleans the house. I cannot manage that physically anymore.” The fatigue that results from caring for elderly and sick persons is another reason to hire an aide. Elderly people often experience not just health problems, but also cognitive impairments and associated behavioral problems. This creates an extra burden on the caregiver (Hooyman, Kiyak 2011). It is necessary to remember that family caregivers are not professionally trained for this type of work (which is not to say that professionals do not experience similar feelings). "I almost collapsed. I was very angry at [my father's] behavior, and sometimes I did not
Petra Ezzeddine: Aging, Care, and Migration know if I am not even worsening my care. I am not a doctor, after all. In addition, I had no contact with anyone, I did not have enough time for my family and friends. I was isolated. But I always wanted to take care of them. I considered that my duty. But after almost three months I said, 'Enough!'� (Vera) My research shows differences between those who employ in-home and outpatient caregivers. The price of in-home care is very high compared to the average wage in the Czech Republic (see page). While outpatient service is used by middle-class families, families that hire in-home caregivers draw above-average incomes and live in the metropolitan area of Prague. They work as managers, businessmen, doctors and, bankers. During interviews with this category of employer-families, their specific socio-economic position was clearly reflected. Rather than discussing feelings of guilt or difficulties coordinating work and care, they spoke about their "financial possibilites to be able to pay for the best standard" or "to be able provide the best that is on the care-market." But both social groups had similar difficulties deciding whether or not to hire Ukrainian migrants for their care needs. Families carefully considered various options for care. Their decisions were based on critiques of state-managed institutions, which have a bad reputation because of the bad conditions that exist. The best solution is to hire a paid caregiver who will take care of the elderly in their own environment, to which they are emotionally attached.
3. 2. Care work: A real job?
Research shows that employment agencies do not advertise this type of work as care work, but rather as domestic work. The reason for this is pragmatic: the Czech Republic is protecting its own labor market by requiring that care work be carried out by people with
Petra Ezzeddine: Aging, Care, and Migration adequate, verifiable education or professional certification. Czech state officials accept original qualification and education for only 30 percent of female Ukrainian migrants, most of whom have university degrees (Gabal Consulting, 2007). At the same time, the process of verifying qualifications takes anywhere from six months to one year, and involves the additional expenses of professional translators and bureaucracy fees. "Agency 3 […] will procure for you experienced helpers and housekeepers from abroad, that will provide you and your relatives with long-term assistance at your home." (Agency 3) "Since we have available experienced and proven helpers and housekeepers from abroad, we can help ensure a helper for you that will focus on all the client’s specific needs.” (Agency 2) Care work is perceived as reproductive-unskilled labor, even when implemented by qualified caregivers in the private environment (Sotelo 2001). However, during interviews with clients (potential employers of caregivers), agencies emphasized the contrary; in other words, the professionalism, relevant qualifications, and experience of their care workers. In my previous research, I found that female Ukrainian domestic workers (nannies and maids) spoke of their employment history in terms of “before” and “after” obtaining skilled work, where they were able to apply their education and talents (Ezzeddine 2011). Ukrainian caregivers perceive elderly care as skilled work, even though they prefer to regard home care service as a step in the process of returning to their original profession, hopefully via a position in the Czech Republic's health service. "I am something like a nurse. I give injections, I do treatment like in hospital. I do everything as in the hospital, only that I am at someone's place at home. It is more like health work. Something which I studied. It is not only cleaning anymore." (Svetlana, female Ukrainian migrant ) "It is like nurse, just at home. Yes, you have to clean, to cook but it is more like nurse job. I am waiting for verification of my nursing education from Ukraine...So it is at least the
Petra Ezzeddine: Aging, Care, and Migration experience, it can help me when I will look for a job. I want to work as nurse in senior houses. To rent a flat, to bring kids, and to work as regulary nurse. " (Nina, female Ukrainian migrant) On the other hand, agencies offer the market a comprehensive care “product.” They also offer other services related to the organization and hygiene of the house; for example, cleaning, cooking, shopping, and ironing. Agency websites advertise vague specifications of work activities, such as “ordinary household cleaning.” This can lead to various conflicts for both clients (employers) and caregivers (female Ukrainian migrants). Employers argue that they ordered a full service, but caregivers consider housework an additional service. "We have ordered the whole service from the agency, including cleaning. This is why we are demanding it. There is lot to do, I admit. But we have ordered and paid for it. It is like any other service.” (Jiří, employer) "Well, I just don’t consider cleaning the windows every month as a regular cleaning. I clean every day, and they (the children of the person who is been taking care of) come and say that I need to clean the cellar. I don’t have this in my contract.” (Natasha, female Ukrainian cargiver) Caregiving is emotionally complicated. Social expectations exist about appropriate feelings based on one's social role, the situation, and the people involved. Hochschild (1979:562) refers to "feeling rules": "individual is conscious of a moment of ´pinch,´ or discrepancy, between what one does feel and what one wants to feel [...] the individual may try to eliminate the pinch by working on feeling." When we are trying to link a particular emotion to an appropriate situation (in this case: caregiving), we are performing "emotional work" (Hochschild 1979). Families hire a caregiver with the expectations of a "human" aspect of caregiving, decent manners, and individual attitudes. The "human aspect" of home care is considered the solution to inhumane conditions found in hospitals and senior medical institutions.
Petra Ezzeddine: Aging, Care, and Migration "I did not want to give her ((mum)) to these collective institutions. Maybe they do good health treatment, but they do not perceive you as human being. They have no time for you. I want something different, somebody who will behave in good manners to her." (Milena, employer) "To be nice! To take care of her, to listen to her long stories, to speak with her, to accompany her [...] It is all I want. And for this I pay a lot of money...." (Vladimir, employer) "I know that [he] will still be Mr. XY, not just the room number like in senior house. Even he is old and ill, he still feels emotions, he needs to feel human communication....!" (Joseph, employer) Concurrently, Ukrainian caregivers stressed the psychological aspect of their work. They spoke about "keeping good atmosphere in home, because it helps them," "keeping them optimistic with a smile, even you are personally not in the mood at that moment," and "good mood of senior saves your energy." Caregivers emphasized a clear link between the psychological and physical condition of elderly people, which helps them to improve social communication during care work. Another challenge of in-home domestic care (where caregivers live in the house of the person they care for), which is less common in the Czech Republic than in Germany and Austria, is that it is still perceived as problematic in the Czech Republic. People are not accustomed to sharing their intimate domestic space with a "stranger.� They see it as an infringement on their private space. "There was a problem here to convince people that the form in home service is simply more convenient. In terms of the safety of health of an old man, but also with regards to financial issues. People here are not used to this kind of service. We have to convince them in almost every case.� (Working Agency number 3)
Petra Ezzeddine: Aging, Care, and Migration When you conduct your work in the same place as your job, and that space is not your own personal space, it is difficult to maintain a boundary between work time and private time. The lack of personal space and combined private and professional life can lead to social isolation, frustration, and loneliness. This can be even truer for female Ukrainian migrants who live far from their friends and loved ones. Although my informants were not new to their host society – most of them had already stayed at least six months in the Czech Republic –... "What is hard about this work is that you live there, actually in your work. And you don’t have your life. I cannot invite friends to visit me because they don’t wish that. I also don’t go out too much, and sometimes I feel very sad. I think that I can stay in this job for a year… not more than that.” (Irina, female Ukrainian migrant) "I don’t have any life. I live where I work. My only free day is Sunday. This is what we agreed upon. But I am simply locked up there with that old lady. She doesn’t talk a lot… and she sleeps. The only time when I go out is when I go to do the shopping. I miss people.” (Yana, female Ukrainian migrant) It is difficult to formalize the work of female migrants, since they live and work in the same place, and their work is done behind closed doors. In interviews, agency owners said that it is difficult to form care work contracts in accordance with present – and in their view, inadequate – legislation. Working contracts were finalized only during real experience and practice. Even so, they contained vague commitments that could be interpreted in different ways, such as in the following example: "Monthly expenses for domestic worker and maids is 15 000 Czech crowns for 6 working days in a week (plus full board and lodging in the house of the employer).” (Agency number 2) Interviews with the families that employ Ukrainian caregivers and the caregivers themselves showed that the food (specifically what is considered a reasonable quantity) and the intensity of work (especially personal free time) were particularly fraught areas of
Petra Ezzeddine: Aging, Care, and Migration the work relationship. "It was written in the contract that she has to work six days a week, but she always sat there watching the TV when I came home in the evening. I understand that she doesn’t have to work all the time, but when I told her that she can clean the windows, she stared weirdly. She has to know what to do for all that money…” (Karel, employer) "I did not go shopping. That was always done by the daughter or son of that sick person. He eats mainly diet food and very small amount…and I was always hungry. Accompanying him to the toilet, cleaning him up, this is hard work. I was shy to tell them, so I also buy my food alone. Even though it is included in the contract, yes.” (Yelena, female Ukrainian migrant) Even though in-home care causes socio-psychological problems for caregivers, it also has positive impacts on the economic status of female Ukrainian migrants. By reducing living expenses during the economic migration, it increases the remittances sent back home. In 2011, the average wage in Ukraine was €248, while in the Czech Republic it reached €1060. The monthly wage for a Ukrainian in-home caregiver, which depends on the agency and professional demands of care, is around €610.2 My informants cited a desire to reach a target accumulation of remittances as their primary motivation for in-home care work. Leontyeva and Tollarova (2011) found that the average annual sum of remittances sent home by female Ukrainian migrants working in the Czech Republic is €1220. My informants could easily save more money than the average female Ukrainian migrant in the Czech Republic. Caregivers regard a one-year work contract as long enough to "earn good money" but not too long to do a demanding job far from home and family. Female migrants spoke about the psychological benefits of working in a private home for a clearly-defined time frame:
2
Statistical data for Czech Republic are available on http://www.czso.cz/csu/redakce.nsf/i/prace_a_mzdy_prace Statistical data for Ukraine are available on http://job.ukr.net /news/samye-vysokie-zaprplaty-v kieve-a-samyenizkie-na rernopolwine/
Petra Ezzeddine: Aging, Care, and Migration "It is important for me to know that I will work like this just one year. I am counting the days in my calendar. I will see kids at Christmas and during holidays. I want to stay in the Czech Republic longer, but not in this job. I can save money to send back to them. But one year is enough." (Oxana, female Ukrainian migrant) The second group of outpatient caregivers – six female Ukrainian migrants who provide between five and eight hours of care service a day – had lower salaries. They preferred outpatient service because they are aware of the psychological demands of in-home care service. They had to find supplementary wage-earning activities, such as cleaning private homes and hotels or occasional baby-sitting, in order to accumulate more remittances. As a result of this combination of jobs, they worked nine to thirteen hours a day. My research shows that the more experienced female Ukrainian migrants – some of whom have provided in-home care and built a strong social network that helps them to find (and sustain) complementary jobs – favor outpatient care work.
Conclusion:
Czech policy-makers perceived family care as nonexistent even though families have always been the primary caregivers of elders. The first time policy makers used the term "family caregiver" was in The National Program for the Preparation of Ageing for the period 2008 to 2012 (Quality of Life in Old Age): "Care is provided for elderly people in particular by family, partner and children. It cannot be expected that the family ceases to play an important role in the coming years. The role of the family will not consist only of providing care, but also of providing necessary assistance and support. Family policy
Petra Ezzeddine: Aging, Care, and Migration should pay systematic attention to the adoption of comprehensive measures to support families and caregivers." But as Hooyaman and Kiyak argue, "the significant family contributors to elder care are still largely unrecognized by many policymakers, creating a 'shadow workforce' in geriatric health care" (2011: 395). My research shows that even those female family caregivers who had expected to experience an enjoyable emotional closeness to their elderly family member felt tension about the obligation. This tension arises not from emotional or financial obligation, but from feelings of guilt for not taking care of them when they need the most care. Isolation and the lack of time for personal interests, as well as time for their families, were the main reasons given for employing a caregiver. The decision to involve Ukrainian migrants in care was not a simple one. Families carefully considered various options. Since statemanaged institutions have a bad reputation, the only solution is to hire a paid caregiver who will take care of their family member in the environment to which they are emotionally attached. On the other hand, Ukrainian caregivers are inspired to migrate for work to improve their children’s lives and their families' finances. Remittances transform their family structure by providing basic requirements for their children, such as education and health care (Carling 2005). Their earnings also contribute to the country of origin by allowing migrants to invest in land, purchase agricultural implements, or set up family businesses. Tolstokorova points out, however, that economic capital derived from migration is primarily spent on direct consumption, education for their children, and housing (2009 a). A great deal less is spent on investing in small businesses. Tolstokorova attributes this minimal investment in long-term sustainable family businesses to Ukraine’s lack of support (legislative, political, and economic) for developing such entrepreneurship (2009 b). The consequence is that migration creates a growth in the migrant family's consumption but at the cost of long-term absence of one or more family members. I believe that the aging society of the Czech Republic will demand the recruitment of a larger foreign labor force. Migrant caregivers deserve their social rights; especially a dignified residence status, verification of qualifications, and – if necessary – a smoother process of family reunification.
Petra Ezzeddine: Aging, Care, and Migration
The problems and risks of domestic work are already reflected on the international level. In June 2011, the International Work Organization (ILO) adopted the Convention on Decent Work for Domestic Workers, which for the first time applies rules to the informal economy. Particular attention is paid to female migrants, whose heightened vulnerability and inequality leads to a greater abuse of rights. States do have obligations under international agreements to adopt procedures that ensure the same protection rights for these groups (for example: the Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women). However, in reality, many countries (including the Czech Republic) are not interested in the position of female domestic workers. We must call on the Czech Republic to adopt relevant laws that will end the abuse of domestic workers on the legislative level. Migrant workers care for our elderly; we should care for them in return.
Erste Fellowship Generations in Dialog Petra Ezzeddine: Ageing, Care and Migration
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