SVART ARBETE, VITT ARBETE: Hur lite skit i hörnen blev ett rent helvete

Abstract

The article discusses a case which made the headlines of Swedish newspapers in the

spring of 2003. A group of suburban women was caught using an immigrant woman

without work permit to clean their homes. The indictments read “crimes against the

aliens act”, but the debate focused on svart arbete, literally translated as black market

work or moonlighting. Both svart arbete and paid home-cleaning contribute to an

infected debate with political undertones in Swedish society. The article makes an

analysis of the women’s justifications and explanations of their use of domestic cleaning

services in the context of changes currently underway in Swedish society. The welfare

state and its institutions are adapting to EU-membership and an enlarged labour market.

Individual actors, both providers and buyers, respond to these market possibilities in

different ways. Ethical and economic considerations are examined vis-à-vis these

women’s own employment, and in regard to perceived earning possibilities for the

foreign cleaning woman. Different conceptions of formal and informal work in the

domestic sphere are discussed.