The social representation of work among irregular construction workers is analyzed. The Social Representation Theory has been employed as a theoretical framework for current investigation. Due to the complexity of the research problem, multiple techniques of data collection were used, comprising in-depth interviews with eight workers and participants' observation. Results show that work is a main factor within the worker's life, basic to social and material survival. Although, construction labor was described as heavy and downgrading, it seems to be the "latest resource" for survival. The workers recognize the precariousness generated by irregularity since they feel inferior to formal workers. This situation denotes that construction workers experience a kind of violence that leaves them out of assured constitutional rights and full citizenship.
Social representation; informal job; construction