The family life and well-being of migrant day labourers in Cape Town

Abstract

Day labourers are individuals in the informal economy who make a living by selling their labour and skills on the streets in return for money. The aim of this study was to examine the lived experiences of day labourers in Cape Town, with a specific focus on the family life and well-being of migrant day labourers. Previous studies have indicated that day driving factors leading to the growth and existence of the informal labour market and day labourers were high unemployment, job scarcity and migration towards South Africa’s urban centres and international migration from other mostly other Africa. The study furthermore determines how such factors of migration and level of income impact the family life and well-being of migrant day labourers in Cape Town.