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SITUATION OF DOMESTIC WORKERS IN INDIA By: DIVYANSH HANU
INTRODUCTION The Domestic Workers come from the vulnerable communities and the backward areas. Majority of them are poor, illiterate, unskilled and do not understand urban labour market. The work done by the Domestic Workers is undervalued, underpaid and poorly regulated. Lack of decent wages, work conditions and defined work time, violence, abuse, seual harassment at the workplace, victimi!ation at the hands of traffickers or the placement agencies, forced migration, lack of welfare measures and the lack of skill development avenues resulting in the stagnation are major issues that they face.
EXTENT OF PROBLEM FACED BY THE DOMESTIC WORKERS "n #$%#, &ensus classified '.( million people as the )servants.* +y #$(#, &ensus found just around (,--- people doing that work. +ut between the years #$$# and '--# there was a #'- increase in numbers of domestic help. &ensus shows numbers of female workers aged #/0/$ went up #( between the years '--# and '-##. "n the &ities, it went up over (- from around #1.( million in '--# to '/ million in '-##. Domestic Workers are highly eploited and denied just wages and humane working conditions. They are paid well below Minimum Wages for unskilled or semi0skilled workers. 2ast majority of the live0in domestic workers work a minimum of #/ hours a day, seven days a week. The 3art0Time workers often work in %01 different houses for nearly 40#- hours every day. Working hours of the domestic workers can go from 4 to over #4 hours a day. Wages, leave facilities, medical benefits, and the rest time are at employer5s mercy.
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SITUATION GOING OUT OF HAND Moreover, they are often victims of suspicion. "f anything goes is missing in house, they are the first to be accused with threats, physical violence, police interrogation, conviction, and even dismissal. 6 great number of live0in domestic workers are recruited from the rural or tribal areas. They have to adapt to alien environment, culture, and the language. They are often not allowed to use telephone and are prohibited from sociali!ing with the friends and the relatives who are living and working in same city. Most recent incidents that shocked the nation was in Mahagun Moderne in 7oida sector (4 burst into the news on 8uly 8ul y #','-#( when the hidden world of invisible in visible workers work ers and insensitive employers came into view. There was a riot0like situation in the society located in 7ational &apital 9egion after :ohra +ibi, a domestic worker was found in basement of the society in unconscious condition. ;he alleged that she was beaten up by her employers for stealing money, but somehow she managed to escape the torture and reached the basement. What happened in 7oida is not the first time a domestic worker has complained of mistreatment. There are innumerable incidents, one of such horrific incident is of Ten0year0 old ;onu from +hopal who was employed by an affluent family in Lokhandwala, Mumbai. "n 8une '--, was found ;onu trying out a lipstick that belonged to the employer.
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CURRENT LEGISLATIONS ARE INEFFECTIVE Whenever such incidents come to light, there is some discussion about conditions of the domestic workers. +ut little changes. There are some imminent =uestions that are re=uired to answered such> Why does this happen? Why does "ndian society turn a blind eye to such crass eploitation? @ow do the generations of the "ndians grow up accepting that there are some people whose life5s mission is to serve and clean up? @ow do we accept concept of a )servant*? Labour legislations in "ndia show that the domestic workers are not included in ;cope of several labour laws because of the constraints in definitions of )workman*, )employer* or )establishment*. 7ature of their work, specificity specificit y of employee0employer employee0emplo yer relationship and workplace being a private household instead of a public pu blic place or private p rivate establishment, ecludes their coverage from the eisting laws. Aven 3lacement 6gencies escape from ambit of the labour laws, because of such definitional issues. To include the Domestic Workers under these laws, definitions will have to be amended. ;ome Laws that need such amendments include Minimum Wages 6ct, #$14B The Maternity +enefit 6ct, #$#B Workman5s &ompensation 6ct, #$'%B "nter0;tate Migrant Workers 6ct, #$($B 3ayment of Wages 6ct, #$%B A=ual 9emuneration 6ct, #$(B Amployee5s ;tate "nsurance 6ct, #$14B Amployees 3rovident
LEGAL DEVELOPMENT IN INDIA There has been an attempt at creating a law within the &ountry in form of ‘Domes!" Wo#$e#s We%&'#e '() So"!'% Se"*#!y A"+ ,-.-/ B!%%+ drafted by the 7ational &ommission
for Women 7&WE which attempted to bring this large and vulnerable work force of Domestic Workers into the mainstream and help address the complaints about the unpaid wages, starvation, inhumane work hours and verbal, physical and seual abuse. 3roposed law was meant for the Domestic Workers above #4 years of age and clearly stated that no child shall be employed as a domestic worker.
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+ut little progress has been made in passing this bill so far. "t is now imminent that "ndia revived debate on the issue relating to the Domestic Worker. 6fter the "ndependence, Covernment passed more than 1- &entral Labour Legislations. +ut these legislations have benefited only workers employed in the organi!ed sector, when in actual fact about $% per cent of the labour falls into the category of unorgani!ed sector. S'e o& T'm!% N')* included the Domestic Workers in their Manual Workers 6ct and
created a separate +oard for them. While Maharashtra is actively considering a law for them. Fnder ;ection '( 6E, Maharashtra ;tate 3ublic ;ervice &onduct 6ct, #$$(, Covernment employees are prohibited from employing children below #1 as Domestic Workers. ;uch rules can be found in the rule books of #4 other ;tates. Garnataka has notified minimum wages for domestic workers and Gerala has followed suit. The Covernment of "ndia has amended the &entral &ivil ;ervice &onduct rules to prohibit civil servants from employing children below the age of #1 as Domestic @elp. S'e Go0e#(me(s o& A()1#' P#')es1+ B!1'#+ C11'!s2'#1+ 31'#$1'()+ K'#(''$'+ Ke#'%'+ M'1'#'s1#'+ O)!s1'+ R'4's1'( '() T'm!% N')* have taken several steps to
improve working conditions of Domestic Workers and to provide access to the ;ocial ;ecurity ;chemes. ;tate of Garnataka has allocated amount of H#- crore has been allocated in this ;tate budget for issuance of ;mart cards to all the unorganised sector workers, including domestic workers. The issuance process has begun and the cards would all be issued in a couple of months. Aven though 4 ;tates, Garnataka, Tamil 7adu, Gerala, 6ndhra 3radesh, 9ajasthan, Irissa, +ihar, and 8harkhand, have a fied minimum wage for domestic workers, violations still take place because of a lack lac k of complaints mechanism. mechanis m. "n most cases, Wage 9ate is fied arbitrarily, is too low and irrelevant to those working in the urban areas where the cost of living is much higher.
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Covernment of 9ajasthan has enforced fied minimum wages for Domestic @elp and has set limited working hours. The move comes after the 6 ;tate Labour DepartmentJs notification dated December '#, '-#/, which had mentioned implementation of the labour reforms in unorganised sector. Minimum Wage has been set at 9s /,1' per month for an eight0hour which will include cooking, washing, baby sitting and other daily chores. "t is eclusive of food, clothing, accommodation or any other benefits. The major problem that is faced by the Domestic Workers is that they still don5t have a legal definition as to what constitutes )Domestic Worker* under any "ndian Law. "n A*2*s ,-.5+ Co(2#ess MP S1's1! T1'#oo# introduced the T1e Domes!" Wo#$e#s/ We%&'#e B!%%+ ,-.5 in the Lok ;abha.
@ere is a look at the some of its important features, which are as follows> .6 P#!0'e Ho*se1o%) '() ' Wo#$7%'"e
+ill defines ‘Domes!" Wo#$/ as work performed in or for a private household(s) and includes cooking, cleaning, housekeeping, driving, gardening, child care and old-age care, but does not include work related to businesses run from private households. ;pecifying households as a workplace and not treating it as a Kprivate space5, would, in itself be a significant step in securing the rights of domestic workers. ,6 I("%*)es M!2#'( Wo#$e#s
"n the recent confrontation between domestic workers and residents of Mahagun Moderne in 7oida, migrant workers were identified and banned. 3roposed +ill defines ‘Domes!" Wo#$e#/ as a person a person employed to do domestic work for a remuneration, whether in cash or
in kind, for one or more employers by staying at the household premises or otherwise and includes casual, temporary, contractual or migrant workers.
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86 P#o0!s!o( &o# C1!%)#e( *()e# .9 em7%oye) 's 1e Domes!" Wo#$e#s
"n the '-#- +ill proposed by 7ational &ommission for Women, there was a !ero0tolerance towards employing domestic workers under age of #4. While the '-# 3rivate Member5s +ill defines a ‘M!(o# Domes!" Wo#$e#/ as one who is above the age of sixteen years, but below the age of eighteen and has completed compulsory elementary education .
6 E(1'("e) De&!(!!o( o& W'2es
Fnder 3roposed +ill, ‘W'2es/ means all remuneration expressed in terms of money, but does not include the value of any accommodation (rent), s upply of light, water, medical attendance etc. The employer would also be liable to extend his/her contribution towards any social security scheme or insurance, give travel allowances or concessions and any other compensation on discharge. ;6 Co(#'" Re2!s#'!o(
mployer or !lacement "gency would have to, within two months of the commencement of the employment of a domestic worker, register the employment agreement and get it verified by either the local !anchayati #a$ institution or the local urban body, the resident welfare association, or a non-profit organisation working among domestic workers. While the intent of the +ill cannot be disputed, it is least likely to be a priority and most likely to be met with resistance on practical aspects of implementation. 6nd while the legislation alone won5t solve bias and discrimination that the Domestic Workers in our country face, a healthy debate could go a long way in influencing attitudes among employers. D#'& o& N'!o('% Po%!"y &o# Domes!" Wo#$e#s is under consideration of the Covernment.
The salient features of the 3olicy are as under> i. "nclusion of Domestic Workers in the eisting legislations ii. Domestic workers will have the right to register as workers with the ;tate Labour Department. ;uch registration will facilitate their access to rights benefits accruing to them as workers. iii. 9ight to form their own associations, trade unions
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iv. 9ight to have minimum wages, access to social security, protection from abuse, harassment, violence v. 9ight to enhance their professional skills vi. 3rotection of Domestic Workers from abuse and eploitation who are recruited to work abroad vii. Domestic Workers to have access to courts, tribunals, etc. viii. Astablishment of a mechanism for regulation of placement agencies.
INTERNATIONAL RESOLUTION 6ccording to the estimates by the "nternational Labour Irganisation "LIE, there are at least four million domestic servants in "ndia. Most of them are the migrants, women, many are minors, and belong to lowest end of Aconomic ;pectrum. "ndia is a signatory to "LI5s #4$th convention, known as &onvention on the Domestic WorkersB but has not ratified it yet. &onvention mandates that the domestic workers be given daily and weekly rest hours, their payment must meet minimum wage re=uirement, and that they should be allowed to choose place where they live and spend their leave. 9atifying ;tates are re=uired to take the protective measures against violence against such workers and are re=uired to enforce the minimum age for the employment purposes. @owever, since these provisions are not binding on those countries that have not ratified the convention, "ndia is not obliged to enforce these recommendations. 6 major victory for recognition of domestic workersJ rights was achieved on 8une #, '-## when the Domestic Workers &onvention was adopted at the #--th "nternational Labour Irganisation "LIE &onference in Ceneva which sought to bring in an estimated /% to #-million workers worldwide under the realm of labour standards. The &onvention recogni!es the )significant contribution of domestic workers to the global economy* and says this work is )undervalued and invisible, and mainly carried out by women and girls, many of whom are migrants or members of disadvantaged communities.*
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WAY FORWARD Inly an integrated law can regulate 3lacement 6gencies and conditions of Domestic Work and provide ;ocial ;ecurity to them. Mere etension of the ;hops Astablishments 6ct, to register the 3lacement 6gencies as has been done in Delhi and which is proposed nationally, is not the real solution. 6ccording to 7ational @uman 9ights &ommission '--'0'--%E, about $- per cent of the trafficking in "ndia is internal. 7on0availability of the jobs in rural or tribal areas, such as 8harkhand, facilitates continuous supply of the women workers to Delhi and the other cities. "ndia is also a source and transit route for the trafficking women and girls to Middle Aast for the domestic work. "n this process of migration there are risks, particularly particularl y because of the deceptive recruitment practices or abuses at hands of the workers5 employers. emp loyers. Inly &entral Law can meet re=uirements of regulating the Domestic Workers sector since workers also fre=uently cross the inter0state boundaries. The Domestic Workers are also caught in trap of the agents who supply them to the placement agencies or even harass or traffic them for other forms of forced labour is a reality. There is also a need to develop a separate piece of legislation dealing eclusively with &rimes committed against the Domestic Workers like Murder, 9ape, ;eual 6ssault, ;eual harassment etc. ;uch piece of legislation should be brought into effect on the lines of ;eual @arassment of Women at Workplace 3revention, 3rohibition and 9edressalE 6ct,'-#% and the Dowry 3rohibition 6ct,#$# which eclusively deal with crimes committed against a particular section of the society. Thus, similarly 3arliament should enact a law l aw in relation to provide crime committed against ag ainst the Domestic Workers where the workers wo rkers are provided pro vided time bound and effective effectiv e justice. Covernment of "ndia has developed an "ntegrated 7ational 3lan of 6ction against the Trafficking and is taking steps to put some remedial measures in place in form of "ntegrated 6nti0Trafficking Fnits and 6nti0Trafficking 7odal cells, but still there is a need for a more comprehensive legislation on the labour trafficking. 6t the same time, Law regulating "nterstate Migration, "nter0;tate Migrant Workmen 6ct,#$($, will also re=uire major amendments.
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