"I am not just a domestic worker" : A phenomenological study of organized Nicaraguan domestic workers in Costa Rica

Sammanfattning: In this study, I use semi-structured interviews in an intersectional and phenomenological theoretical framework, elaborating on analytical concepts such as belonging and translocational positionality, to investigate the lived experiences of Nicaraguan migrant domestic workers in Costa Rica who are organized in the association Astradomes. I explore if and how their experiences are connected to intersections mainly between nationality, class and gender, and examine in which spaces and contexts agency and resistance can be located. I show that the intersections between nationality, class and gender - as well as age - have shaped the respondents experiences of working as domestic workers in Costa Rica, resulting in disorientation and hierarchical employer-employee relationships.  I also demonstrate that Astradomes is a social place where the social categories of the respondents, such as class, gender and nationality, produce solidarity, agency and resistance. Moreover, it is a space where the respondents have been able to relocate - and to feel at home.