By Fara Armenteros, UPECI
HAVANA (UPECI) – Domestic help, which disappeared in Cuba after 1959,
is making a comeback.
The role of the domestic servant was a classic staple in Cuban theater, but
the Castro government considered work as maids or servants humilating, although
many officials employed them.
Now, after an absence of four decades, domestic help is returning, at least
in Havana. But the offer far exceeds the demand.
Some women approaching retirement age in government service prefer to
continue working, but as domestic help in private homes. Such is the case of
Isabel Gómez, who worked as an accountant at what she considerd to be a
reasonable salary until the "special period" cut into her buying
power. She wanted to retire but found she could not afford to do so.
Then a cousin recommended her to a family that needed domestic help. "I
provide a service and they pay for it," she said.
Yolanda Pérez was unable to continue as an office worker because of
arthritis. Now she works in a private home as a cook.
"With what I earned as an office worker I couldn’t pay the repair
bill on my refrigerator,"she said. "But in three months as a private
cook I was able to."
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original en español
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