So What?: Young Housemaids' Perspectives on Their Work and Future Life in Jakarta, Indonesia

Abstract

This study is based on fieldwork at PKBM Kelapa Gading North Jakarta in Indonesia in 2010. The aim of this study is to provide an analytical concept of the everyday life and future expectations of young girls who are working as housemaids in the middle-class housing area in the northern part of Jakarta. The research informants were girls between age of 14 and 17 years old. The fieldwork took place in July and August 2010.

The focus of this study is to understand how life experiences forms sense of responsibility and solidary by the everyday life and perspectives of young housemaids, their relationship to their parents and families, their everyday life as housemaids and how they cope with their work, and how they see and expect their future life. The empirical material is categorized according to three main dimensions. Firstly, relationship which points to the generational relation that play significant role in the decision making between two generations. Secondly, responsibility with emphasis the reason behind the decision to work and the daily experiences as housemaids. Lastly, expectation which shows that despite their life circumstances as housemaids, the girls still have strong hopes and faith for better future. By using the opportunity to go back to school in between their daily works, these young girls conceptualised their expectation to better future for themselves and their families. The main finding concentrates on the understanding of poverty and exploitation of children and young people which seemed to be the most common strategy to eliminate one of so called the modern slavery of child domestic labour. It is more about history, social-cultural practices and understanding that, determine the sense responsibility and solidarity.