Domestic Workers: Lives Hidden and Ignored
A few days back, I bumped into Suwarna , my earlier house-help, at a neighbourhood provision store. She was pleading the shopkeeper to continue giving her grocery on credit, he blatantly refused saying she first clear her dues of past three months. Suwarna shared about losing work at two households as the owners bought dishwasher so no longer require support for scrubbing utensils.
The coronavirus crisis has posed unprecedented uncertainty in lives of several women domestic helps. Unsure about continuity of their employment; many have been living in constant feeling of helplessness for not being able to take care of the family like before. Several women like Suwarna have lost jobs during the lockdown, they are constantly being neglected by government as if they are non-existing. For migrant domestic helps, it’s a battle of survival, many have ended up taking poorly paid house work.
Domestic workers or helps are persons engaged by households to render domestic services for remuneration. The work undertaken by domestic workers, mostly women, includes housecleaning, cleaning utensils, washing clothes, cooking, taking care of young children or elderly or differently abled. Domestic work also includes driving for owner, housekeeping and security services, tasks generally performed by men.
The domestic work engages a large number of informal sector workers, mainly women. It is certainly a growing segment of the informal workforce. As per National Sample Survey (NSSO Statsitics-2011–2012,68th round) estimation 3.9 million people are employed as domestic workers by private households, of which 2.6 million are female domestic workers. As current figures are not available, the actual number of people engaged as house helps must be much higher.
Life and Livelihood in times of Coronavirus
The world of domestic help is changing amid corona crisis. It is a possibility that constantly increasing demand for domestic workers will come down till the crisis settles.
Centre for Catalyzing Change has been undertaking several initiatives as part of our response to Covid-19 outbreak and subsequent lockdowns we have interacted with domestic workers in Bihar and conducted in-depth interviews to know the on-ground situation, economic and social sentiments, coping mechanism, fears, and priorities. Almost every one interacted with have said that lockdowns mean poverty and hunger for them. They also said to have no savings left to utilise during no-work (and no payment) period. Other impacts include: -
- Decline in economic activity at household level.
- Income per household dropped considerably.
- Expenditure increased for some as migrant family members returned back.
- Many appear to be excluded from mainstream financial system as don’t have basic bank account.
- There is no focus on nutrition, feeding empty stomachs is the priority.
- Increased verbal arguments, violent outbursts, abuse and violence by spouse to home mainly due to economic stress and incompatibility issues.
- Constant emotional stress due to no / reduced earnings.
- Fear of loss of life as precautionary measures / guidelines are not being followed.
The interaction with Patna based domestic workers further yield into below mentioned findings:
§ Patna being the capital city has attracted many migrant women from nearby districts to work as domestic workers. Many factors lead women to take-up domestic work, such as growing expenses at household, husband inadequately contributes to expenses, need of economic autonomy, easy job availability at neighbourhood of nearby locations, flexi work hours and manageable work profile — cleaning, cooking, taking care of children and the elderly is something they already know.
§ Most respondents were okay about unregulated domain of private home, they said they lack education or appropriate skill-set to get employed at organised sector. The domestic work gives them flexi work hours with economic autonomy.
§ Life is totally dependent on earnings from work. There is hardly any financial stability. Many domestic helps are principle bread-earners of their families.
§ Amid Coronavirus crisis, domestic work is no longer an easily available livelihood option for them. Some families have taken loan from local moneylenders to manage liquidity crisis.
§ They hardly care about advisory measures on social distancing. Many said, it is applicable to better off households. Further, very few take attempt to ensure handwashing by self and family members along with proper cleanliness of residential space.
§ On existing reporting systems (helpline) on domestic violence, many said reporting won’t help in resolving personal matters. Women interacted with were shy in disclosing about physical or sexual violence during lockdown.
Support Framework
The Central Government is already implementing Unorganised Workers’ Social Security Act, 2008, to provide social security relating to life and disability cover, health and maternity benefits, old age protection to the unorganised workers including domestic workers. The act was hardly enforced and ineffective in its present form; It requires eligible ones to register at the district authority, and social security part is reduced to schemes. Further, hardly any domestic worker or her employer aware about it.
Labour ministry is considering to bring about a national policy on domestic workers. The draft policy proposes to recognise part-time and full-time domestic help as workers; give them rights to register with state labour department, ensure minimum wages and regularised work hours to the domestic workers. The draft policy is still at a consideration stage and yet to be presented for cabinet approval.
Final Words
The lockdown may be temporary but its effect will be long term for domestic workers. With job loss, no job protection, no state or central response for them amid these challenging times, they live in perpetual confusion of life versus livelihood.
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