Territórios da informalidade: as diferentes estratégias reprodutivas das famílias inseridas no comércio informal de Viçosa-MG

• Autor(a) principal: Lelis, Juliana Lopes
• Data de Publicação: 2011
• Tipo de documento: Dissertação
• Idioma: por
• Título da fonte: LOCUS Repositório Institucional da UFV
• Texto Completo: http://locus.ufv.br/handle/123456789/3341
• topic: Informalidade; Família; Territórios; Informality; Family; Territories; CNPQ::CIENCIAS SOCIAIS APLICADAS::ECONOMIA DOMESTICA

On witnessing the growth of social inequalities in urban Brazil, informality has been found an alternative for families to maintain their physical and social reproduction. This informality, initially characterized as precarious activities, now presents with new trends, since it has acquired different purposes in the lives of families. Present in a significant way in small and large urban centers, it builds, social and spatial relations in their daily lives that reveal the complexity of their universe. In this perspective, this research aimed to understand the territories and territoriality built by the families included in informal trade of Viçosa (MG). To this end, the survey is characterized as a study of quantitative, qualitative and descriptive analytical nature, using methods such as data collection, a survey, in-depth interviews and life stories. The study was conducted in Viçosa (MG), and the sample was comprised of 208 traders. To collect the data, different techniques were combined: non-participant observation, document analysis and records of the City, questionnaire and semi-structured interviews, and field notes. Data analysis was based on two procedures: the use of SPSS (Statistical Package for Social Sciences) and the collation and analysis of information from the analytical categories taken from theoretical references. The results showed that the profile of the traders was diverse, especially in the presence of men (66.8%), married (70.7%), locals and from the Viçosa microregion (87.7%), mean age 44. 6, who had little education, and also sold different types of goods. In addition, the results showed that, as a reflection of the national trend, the informal trade of Viçosa (MG) took different purposes in the lives of families involved, since 29.3% saw it as an alternative to exit unemployment, 27.7% as an activity to raise the family income, 23.2% saw it as a good work opportunity, 6.6% as a form of entertainment, a 9.8% chance of keeping the family tradition, and 3.4% as possibility of developing self-employment. Moreover, even acting in specific (Chequer Shopping and Free Trade and Crafts) and temporary locations (occupation of the streets, sidewalks and squares by street vendors), informal traders created different meanings in these networks and other spatialities, demarcating the territories of informality. Thus, it was possible to verify the existence of three territories, which appeared as the mirror for the relations established in everyday informal sector: the precarious territory, seen as the only option to work, where the highlight was the help from family members; the rising territory, identified as a lifestyle choice, which had more extensive social networks, not limited to family members; and the territory of resistance, seen as a possibility of family work, which highlighted the social relations and symbolic representations of their workers. We conclude, therefore, that in addition to its importance as a strategy to support the physical survival of the group, informal trade has become also an activity that allows families to achieve other life goals. And yet the familiar structure, in any of these territories, was demonstrated as the main reference for the maintenance of this activity. Thus, on the basis of these territories was the logic of organization of family groups, marked by an identity that was diluted between spaces of work and home.