In a society with an unprecedented history of immigration, those who are often seen as a drain on America's resources cross borders in search of equal opportunity. Grace Chang's vital account of immigrant women - who work as nannies, domestic workers, janitors, nursing aides and homecare workers - proves the opposite: women who perform our least desirable jobs are crucial to our economy and society. Disposable Domestics highlights the unrewarded work immigrant women perform as caregivers, cleaners and servers and shows how women actively resist exploitation.

The volume presents a variety of unique perspectives on mothering as a socially constructed relationship focused on caring and nurturing. Crossing a range of ethnicities and classes, it addresses different ideas and practices of mothering, the need to expand our definitions beyond biological determinism and 'family values', and the conditions under which, and resources with which, mothering occurs. Since mothering is central to the reproduction of social relations - the main vehicle by which people form their first identities and learn their place in society - it constitutes a contested terrain. This work brings together important voices on the most examined and 'essential' aspect of female being.

To date, most research on immigrant women and labor forces has focused on the participation of immigrant women on formal labor markets. In this study, contributors focus on informal economies such as health care, domestic work, street vending, and the garment industry, where displaced and undocumented women are more likely to work. Because such informal labor markets are unregulated, many of these workers face abusive working conditions that are not reported for fear of job loss or deportation. In examining the complex dynamics of how immigrant women navigate political and economic uncertainties, this collection highlights the important role of citizenship status in defining immigrant women's opportunities, wages, and labor conditions. Contributors are Pallavi Banerjee, Grace Chang, Margaret M. Chin, Jennifer Jihye Chun, Hector R. Cordero-Guzman, Emir Estrada, Lucy Fisher, Nilda Flores-Gonzalez, Ruth Gomberg-Munoz, Anna Romina Guevarra, Shobha Hamal Gurung, Pierrette Hondagneu-Sotelo, Maria de la Luz Ibarra, Miliann Kang, George Lipsitz, Lolita Andrada Lledo, Lorena Munoz, Bandana Purkayastha, Mary Romero, Young Shin, Michelle Tellez, and Maura Toro-Morn.

To date, most research on immigrant women and labor forces has focused on the participation of immigrant women on formal labor markets. In this study, contributors focus on informal economies such as health care, domestic work, street vending, and the garment industry, where displaced and undocumented women are more likely to work. Because such informal labor markets are unregulated, many of these workers face abusive working conditions that are not reported for fear of job loss or deportation. In examining the complex dynamics of how immigrant women navigate political and economic uncertainties, this collection highlights the important role of citizenship status in defining immigrant women's opportunities, wages, and labor conditions. Contributors are Pallavi Banerjee, Grace Chang, Margaret M. Chin, Jennifer Jihye Chun, Hector R. Cordero-Guzman, Emir Estrada, Lucy Fisher, Nilda Flores-Gonzalez, Ruth Gomberg-Munoz, Anna Romina Guevarra, Shobha Hamal Gurung, Pierrette Hondagneu-Sotelo, Maria de la Luz Ibarra, Miliann Kang, George Lipsitz, Lolita Andrada Lledo, Lorena Munoz, Bandana Purkayastha, Mary Romero, Young Shin, Michelle Tellez, and Maura Toro-Morn.