Understanding attitudes towards non-Maltese live-in care workers in Malta

Abstract

The main purpose of this study is to understand perceptions and attitudes of Maltese individuals towards non-Maltese live-in care workers, with a specific focus on the power dynamics involved in this relationship. This study also seeks to understand how these perceptions and attitudes in turn influence the inclusion of foreign live-in care workers in Malta. A qualitative approach was adopted, whereby data was collected through twelve semi structured interviews which were carried out with Maltese nationals who required the services of a paid non-Maltese live-in care worker for a family member in the past four years. The data was analysed using reflexive thematic analysis, through which key themes emerging from participants’ responses were identified and interpreted. This study adopted a feminist epistemology, drawing on Black Feminist thought, which acknowledges that social positions are rarely absolute, as individuals may simultaneously experience both privilege and disadvantage through intersecting systems of oppression. This study highlights how certain stereotypes around live-in care work are prevalent in Malta, particularly the gender and racial connotations related to paid care work. This study also reveals the difficulties Maltese nationals experience when recruiting live-in carers. This study also sheds light on the significant level of trust required when entrusting family members to the care of strangers. The participants also pointed out that they shared common cultural elements with the foreign live-in carers, and although initially the cultural differences were more notable, with time, they were more likely to focus on those that they shared. This helped influence the quality of their relationship. This study delineates the power dynamics inherent in the live-in care relationship in Malta and reveals the interdependent nature of this relationship between Maltese employers and their family’s live-in carers. While employers hold power at the macro-level as citizens, livein carers hold powerful positions at the micro-level in domestic spaces, particularly due to the intimate and emotional nature of the labour involved in care work. This study has identified how the dependence on foreign care fosters sustained interpersonal contact with migrant workers, which gradually improved perceptions and attitudes towards migrant workers in Malta. Therefore, this study concludes that the interdependent nature of this relationship contributes to the integration of migrant workers in Maltese society, as with time these ‘barranin’ (outsiders) become insiders via caring.