Since the 1970s global and national economic processes have reshaped the organization of production and of social reproduction. As part of the change in the organization of social reproduction, there is an increased demand for domestic workers. The focus of this article is on Mexican immigrant women who fulfill that demand and who form part of a "new" domestic labor in Santa Barbara, California. Two themes emerge: at the local level the domestic labor market is more heterogeneous than previously described, consisting of multiplicity of forms. The domestic labor market is, in turn, polarized. Two case studies-one of a "labor contractor" and the other of an "elderly care provider"-illustrate some of what the emerging, polarized categories are, the quantitatively distinct labor process associated with each, and some of the differences and similarities between the Mexicanas who undertake domestic employment.

Mexican immigrant women Migration Labor process Domestic employment

womens employment domestic work labor market United States immigrant population