SERVANT - WORKER - FAMILY MEMBER: POLISH WOMEN AS DOMESTIC WORKERS IN NAPLES

The text is based on fieldwork research in Naples, mainly on the analysis of in-depth interviews with Polish female migrant domestic workers. The analysis is presented against the background of re-traditionalisation of the institution of domestic service, caused by contemporary migration processes, which introduce serious asymmetry to the situation of domestic worker. Combining own research materials with the information from literature concerning contemporary and past domestic workers, the text aims at individuating and describing basic models of relationships between domestic worker and employers. The individuated models are: 'overt degradation', 'fictive kinship', 'professionalisation' and 'friendly professionalism'. The article employs symbolic-interactional perspective to show the interplay between models and perspectives and the ways the models are used in everyday interactions between domestic workers and employers.