No Way Back: Bordering Layered Precarity among Moroccan Domestic Workers at the European Border in North Africa

Domestic work remains a vital yet undervalued sector, often marked by informality and exploitation, particularly for migrant women. This paper examines the Spanish North African enclaves of Ceuta and Melilla, where thousands of Moroccan domestic workers once crossed the border daily to work. The COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020 marked a turning point, as restrictive border policies halted this mobility, leaving many workers trapped in the cities. Drawing on interviews with Moroccan domestic workers, the study explores how their labor and living conditions have evolved amid shifting border dynamics. Findings reveal that the intersection of labor, border, and gender regimes has deepened precarity: workers have been reclassified as irregular migrants, many have shifted to live-in arrangements, and dependence on employers has intensified. These changes have negatively impacted mental health – not only due to labor conditions, but also because of prolonged family separation and forced immobility – highlighting the human cost of border control.