Abstract
M.Phil. (Industrial Psychology)
Zimbabwe is an intensely migrant society, with approximately 574,047 Zimbabwean migrants living in South Africa in 2016, according to a recent estimate (Statistics South Africa, 2016). Many of these migrants are women who left Zimbabwe to work as domestic workers in South Africa. Of these women, many often have family members, including young children, left behind in Zimbabwe. This phenomenological study centres on how these women experience family separation and transnational parenting. The qualitative methodology used in this study allowed for the exploration of how these women experience family separation within the context of economic migration. Phenomenological thematic analysis was used to analyse the data collected through semi-structured individual interviews. Eight key themes, namely, leaving Zimbabwe, coming to South Africa, visiting home, coping strategies, challenges in South Africa, children’s experience back home, impact on work, and transnational mothering, were identified around the experience of being away from home. The paper concludes by highlighting that employers of domestic workers have a role to play in terms of providing fair compensation and reasonable leave.