Filipino Au Pairs on the Move: 'Navigating strong and weak ties in the search of future paths'

Abstract

Most Filipina2 au pairs in Denmark send remittances back home, and for many, au pairing forms part of longer-term migration trajectories. This article explores how Filipina au pairs try to carve out a future for themselves abroad. It shows that they navigate within tight webs of financial interdependence, whilst they continuously form their trajectories in relation to opportunities and restraints posed along the way by their local and transnational social relations. The article argues that examinations of migration trajectories benefit from broadening the research out in both time and space by including the migrants’ broader social network within the frame of research.

Keywords

• au pair
• philippines
• migration
• family
• mobility