Social reproduction strategies of female day laborers in a rural community in Zacatecas, Mexico

The increasing incorporation of women into the workplace as agricultural day laborers is leading to a new life dynamic for rural families and different roles for their members, resulting from the pressure of neoliberal policies that the Mexican countryside has suffered.  Family income is managed to meet the basic needs of household members; however, when resources are limited they do not allow satisfying these needs, so the women in these households seek alternatives to change this situation; some join the labor market and others take part in political and social organizations. To the extent to which they are integrated into productive activities, a series of alterations will be brought about in the interaction of the factors depending on the role that the woman plays within the household and society.  This paper is based on the concept of reproduction strategy as a means to understand the changes experienced by rural families due to the increasing incorporation of women into the labor market as agricultural day laborers in a rural community in the state of Zacatecas, Mexico.