Abstract

The following paper aims to reconstruct the work background of mapuche women and men of the Gran Concepción area in the context of the contemporary transformations of labor in Chile, which sprung from the neoliberal reforms of the eighties. As a way to understand the economic dynamic of urban centers, we identify differences and similarities between mapuche people who migrated to cities and their descendants who were born in those urban contexts This research comprised in-depth interviews, analysis of secondary sources, and a descriptive i Antropóloga, Magíster en Investigación Social y Desarrollo, Universidad de Concepción. Correo-e: [email protected] Dra. en Antropología, académica Universidad de Concepción, Chile. Correo-e : [email protected]: 29 Septiembre 2015 Revisado: 28 Julio 2016 Aceptado: 30 Agosto 2016 8/Constanza Torres y Andrea Aravenaanalysis of statistical information from the Survey of National Socioeconomic Characterization (CASEN) 1996, 2003 and 2011; all of which provided a more general perspective on our research topic. Among the findings we observe that the Gran Concepción area works as a dynamic pole of mapuche employment, favoring a powerful identity visibility for mapuche people. On the other hand, we can identify differential labor itineraries according to education, but at the same time they are influenced by neoliberal reforms in different ways. While mapuche migrants experience changes in the work structure, their city-born descendants build a new way of experiencing work, with new expectations and ways of understanding it.