Social representations about the public and private sphere and the meaning of work were investigated in adult collectors of recyclables, residents' Chocolatão Village "located in central Porto Alegre / RS. The ethnographic description was used as a method of approach to research, then a content analysis of the informal dialogues, diaries and interviews. The results showed that the researched context emerges as a metaphor of the contradictions and the "blurring" between the public and private spheres in contemporary society. Social representations of the categories "work" and "home" are rooted in the complexity of everyday life. As for the actions of political dissonance between the various agencies involved with the community reflected the absence of a common project and lack of communication both between sectors and between the villagers, hindering the implementation of various policies intended, deepening, thus, mistrust and conflict in the community.
recycled garbage picker; social representations; work; housing