The hidden work in the sugar cane fields

Abstract

This article discusses the reconfiguration of labor in the sugar cane fields in the state of Sao Paulo. It looks at it under the prism of gender/class/ethnicity and after two major agreements were made: The agro-environmental protocol between UNICA (Sugar Cane Industry Union) and the state government in 2007; and the Free Membership Pact between the labor unions – CONTAG e FERAESP –, the federal government and employers’ representatives. These agreements symbolize the transition from handcutting sugar cane to mechanical harvesting. Based on labor´s fast changes in the sugar cane fields, which involve soil preparation, planting, pest control, weeds and harvesting; it is important that these labor tasks be analyzed in the post- handcutting harvesting era. This statement does not mean that manual labor will completely disappear. In fact, new arrangements in the labor market and new ways of exploiting the workforce will emerge. The data presented below were gathered from researches conducted in many different regions of the state during the last decades. These researches were conducted through the oral history method, the direct observation and document analysis. Dissertations and theses were also supported in various universities and research centers.