Belo Horizonte: Two elderly women rescued from domestic slave labor

Two elderly women, aged 90 and 65, were rescued from conditions analogous to domestic slave labor at a residence in Belo Horizonte, Brazil. According to the Public Ministry of Labor in Minas Gerais (MPT-MG), the women had worked for the same family for generations without receiving salaries or labor rights.

The 90-year-old woman had reportedly worked for the family since her adolescence, spanning 75 years without formal registration or benefits such as paid vacation. The 65-year-old woman had lived with the family since she was five years old. Their duties included cleaning, preparing meals, and grocery shopping.

The rescue was conducted in late August through a joint operation involving the MPT-MG, the Federal Police, and inspectors from the Regional Superintendency of Labor. The women were living in a moldy dependency within the house, sleeping in windowless rooms. Following the rescue, they were sent for medical evaluation and placed in the municipal support network.

While the homeowners claimed the women were treated as family members, the prosecution contested this, noting they lacked access to the same property rights, education, and healthcare as the owners. The investigation began in March following an anonymous tip suggesting that government social benefits intended for the women were being managed by the family.