Abstract
The working conditions, relative wages, and social standing of care occupations are the result of diverse causes that can worsen, improve, or neutralize the labor disadvantages usually found in care occupations. This article seeks to provide a perspective on the factors underlying care workers’ working conditions in Argentina. It presents a comparative analysis of three highly feminized occupations—early education teachers, nurses, and domestic workers. After highlighting the different working conditions among these occupations, the paper focuses on the critically important role that unionization and state policies have played in defining each labor context in Argentina. The analysis shows how workers’ evaluation of their occupation and working conditions are fundamentally shaped by these two variables.