Miriam sees prejudice in Época magazine.

247 - Journalist Miriam Leitão, from Globo, was very bothered by the cover story in Época magazine's latest edition. She almost wrote a letter to the editors to express her discomfort. Read below:

Gateway to modernity

The new domestic employment law is a great opportunity for change. It will not be easy or painless, but it will have profound social, economic, behavioral, and family repercussions. It will demand a lot from all of us and impose requirements on public policies. It is progress. It has arrived at a time when domestic workers can choose where to work.

The number of domestic workers has been falling, while income has been rising. This indicates that there is more demand than supply for this type of labor and new opportunities in the job market.

It will become more expensive to have a domestic employee, but it's a natural progression. Giving the same rights to all workers is progress. Do you want the person to work late on a day when you're having friends over for dinner? Perfect, the employee will be paid overtime. Do you want to terminate the employment contract? Perfect, she will have the same rights as all workers in the formal market.

There's an infernal amount of bureaucracy in the job market. It's a great time for the government to simplify it. In households, this is even more urgent because there's no accountant. The government could also simplify the regulatory paraphernalia for legal entities.

New opportunities are opening up in all areas. Families that have two maids, or keep their employee working excessive hours, will now have to demand collaboration from the entire family group.

The magazine Time A week ago, they published a report on "what women want from men." In the text about the new division of tasks, the subtitle is "Men have never helped so much with housework and childcare." The caption reads: "Men feel more comfortable helping with childcare." The second caption reads: "He helps so much with housework that the couple dismissed the maid." What surprised me was the insistence on the wrong verb. I wanted to write a letter to the publication:

Dear magazine TimeAs a reader, subscriber, and admirer of the publication, I would like to point out that 'helping' presupposes that the obligation—in caring for the home and children—falls on the woman. This no longer makes sense. Therefore, I suggest that the next time you do such an interesting report, you forget the verb 'to help' when discussing the division of labor between people who have equal responsibilities.”

Spoiled children who grow up screaming for the maid to hand them everything, as if they were disabled, or who don't know how to maintain even a minimum of order in their spaces, will have to change their habits. The employee will have less time, as she will have to dedicate herself to essential matters.

Public policies will have to increase the availability of daycare centers or full-time schools. Previously, this was a source of hardship for domestic workers. They are also mothers and need to leave their children. Now, the middle class will demand daycare centers.

The expression "she's become like family" doesn't need to be abolished, but it will no longer be an excuse for an ambiguous relationship where the demands for extra pay for domestic workers' extra work are not respected. Favors, gifts, and small concessions do not replace rights, guarantees, and remuneration.

This law marks the threshold of much-needed modernization in Brazil. The government will have to simplify bureaucratic rules. Families will have to formalize relationships that are currently unclear. Husbands will replace the verb "to help" with "to divide" and "to share." Children will have to be less demanding. Companies will have to adopt more flexible corporate policies so that workers of both sexes can balance childcare and career. It won't be easy for anyone, but Brazil will be more modern.

"It came at a time when domestic workers could choose where to work."