THE CONDITION OF BRAZILIAN WOMEN IN CONTEMPORARY TIMES: LABOR MARKET PARTICIPATION AND POLITICAL-INSTITUTIONAL REPRESENTATION

Abstract

This digital book analyzed the condition of Brazilian women in contemporary society, focusing on participation in the labor market and political-institutional representation, based on the understanding of persistent gender inequalities in Brazilian society. The research investigated to what extent the normative and institutional advances achieved in recent decades produced effective impacts on the expansion of substantive equality between men and women. The study was grounded in theoretical frameworks related to gender relations, the sexual division of labor, and intersectionality, considering the multiple forms of discrimination that affected women’s experiences. The methodology adopted was qualitative, exploratory, and bibliographic, supported by documentary analysis of legal norms, institutional reports, and statistical data from official agencies, covering the period from 2000 to 2025. The results demonstrated that, although women expanded their presence in educational, professional, and political spaces, structural inequalities remained regarding wages, labor precariousness, the overload resulting from domestic work and unpaid care work, as well as female underrepresentation in spaces of power and decision-making. It was also verified that the formal equality guaranteed by the legal system was insufficient to eliminate historical practices of exclusion and gender discrimination. The research concluded that the condition of contemporary Brazilian women remained marked by contradictions between legislative advances and structural permanencies, highlighting the need to strengthen public policies, affirmative actions, and institutional mechanisms aimed at promoting substantive equality and female participation in social, economic, and political-institutional spaces.