ABSTRACT
Domestic workers play an important part in the labour market and economy of any country. This article aims to investigate the issues faced by domestic workers in India. The objectives of the study are to find out the coping mechanisms used by domestic workers in India and to create solutions that can make domestic work a recognizable profession in India. This paper aims to analyse the rights of domestic workers, highlight the challenges they face, and evaluate the legal protection and their working conditions.
Keywords: Women, Domestic Workers, Exploitation, Legal Vaccum.
INTRODUCTION
Domestic workers are the sector of workers who provide household services such as cleaning, cooking, washing and ironing clothes, gardening, taking care of elderly or children or sick members of the family and even taking care of household pets. Domestic workers may work full-time or part-time, they might be employed in a country where they do not hold citizenship rights, and are called as migrant domestic workers. Domestic work is the most important source of employment for women as compared to men, out of them many women belong to vulnerable socio-economic backgrounds, which renders them a suspect of violation of rights.
Domestic workers are drawn from disadvantaged groups and underprivileged sections of society. The majority of the population is low-income, illiterate, unskilled, and unfamiliar with urban job markets. Their work is devalued, underpaid, and inadequately controlled. Issues such as job conditions, fixed work time, aggression, abuse, sexual harassment, victimization by traffickers/placement agencies, forced migration, lack of welfare, and limited skill development opportunities lead to stagnation.
Usually observed, the number of domestic workers employed in urban areas are women, ill-treated by their employers and deprived of the right to decency of work including which they are subjected to long working hours, sexually exploited, and also face discrimination in payment of wages. Domestic workers are also excluded from Indian labour laws which monitor employment issues such as working conditions, wages, provident funds, social security, maternity leaves and old age pensions.