Across the country, millions of domestic workers remain vulnerable to exploitation of the worst kind because they have no legal protection and social security, even as they make an important contribution to the economy with the services they deliver. Worse, many of them are employed in clear violation of the law, such as the girl rescued in Gurgaon.

It is time the government made new legislation and policies to protect labour engaged in household work.

In 2020, Parliament enacted four labour codes – Code on Wages, 2019; Code on Occupational Safety; Health and Working Conditions, 2020; and Social Security Code, 2020 – by subsuming 29 central labour laws of the country. These laws were aimed at providing decent working conditions, wages, safety, grievance redressal mechanisms and other social security benefits to all categories of workers.

However, there are no provisions in these laws that can serve the specific needs of domestic workers, leaving them totally at the mercy of their employers.

“We have no specific laws to protect domestic workers across the country. This is a serious issue. This raises questions over their rights to a free and dignified life,” said B Shankar, a lawyer at Delhi High Court. “More steps are needed to include them, to make them a part of the economy. Besides that, the government should ensure that this set of employees will get justice with the new legal framework,” Shankar added.

The Social Security Code, 2020 would appear to be the most relevant of the four new laws to safeguard the interests of casual workers such as house help. However, the Code has yet to take effect even after three years of its passage.

Dedicated Legislation

Employment of domestic workers is informal and often underpaid. A legal contract between a domestic worker and her/his employer is rare. Most domestic workers work long hours, without any defined terms and conditions. They are not entitled to a minimum wage and have no legal cover or social security. Instances of torture, violence, sexual harassment and exploitation are not uncommon. Live-in workers are more vulnerable to physical abuse and harassment.

The International Labour Organisation (ILO) defines domestic work as household chores such as sweeping, cleaning utensils, washing clothes, cooking, caring for children and any other work carried out for remuneration. According to government data, the total number of domestic and household workers registered in India stood at 28 million in July 2023.

However, experts believe the actual number could be twice the government figure because many domestic workers do not register themselves. The National Domestic Workers Movement, a Mumbai-based advocacy group, estimates it to be more than 50 million, two-thirds of whom are employed in urban areas.

The share of women and girls in domestic work is rising at a much rapid pace, accounting for 75 per cent of the increase in the number of workers in the last decade. The majority of domestic workers in India are illiterate, minimally educated and low-skilled. Besides, at least 2 lakh children are employed as domestic help and workers, especially at eateries and dhabas.

“We have always emphasised that gig workers, migrant workers and domestic workers need protection by laws. Among these, it is the domestic workers who are more exploited, they are subjected to a lot of atrocities in many of the cases, especially in the urban areas, they are being treated with no dignity, sometimes mercilessly,” said P Santosh Kumar, a Rajya Sabha MP.

“We would need a comprehensive labour policy, which can protect their interests, we cannot leave a large chunk of workers who are working equally diligently for our economic progress at the mercy of their employers,” Kumar said.

That said, another objective of dedicated legislation on domestic workers could be to prevent the exploitation of child labour, which is also often associated with incidents of human trafficking.

When it comes to children being forced into exploitation, there is a huge network of illegal placement agencies across the country that is involved in the trafficking of minor children,” said Rishi Kant, a New Delhi-based anti-trafficking activist.

“Throughout their employment, they are not only forced to work during odd hours, but are also sexually and physically exploited, and denied their daily wages,” he said.

Learning From Asean Neighbours

In 2019, the Union government had finalised a draft policy for the protection of domestic workers but it didn’t go very far. According to labour ministry officials, they are now compiling more data on domestic and household workers, which might take a few more months before the government revisits its 2019 plan.

India would do well to learn from other Asean countries such as Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore and Hong Kong that have enacted laws to protect the rights of domestic workers. Most of these countries have migrant domestic workers from countries such as Nepal, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Indonesia, the Philippines and even India.

In these countries, things like weekly off, rest days, pensions, minimum wages sick leave and social security are provided to workers. For example, in Hong Kong, minimum wage, rest days, paid annual leave and holidays are ensured through laws.

In Thailand, the provision of minimum wage, break time and leave have to be followed as per the law. Singapore has also ensured minimum wage, accommodation, insurance, medical and rest days for domestic workers. It also mandates pension fund contributions from employers.

Kerala Shows The Way

A dedicated central legislation would, however, be limited in its impact to protect domestic workers, unless the states emulate it to bring supporting rules and regulations and implement them in letter and spirit.

Most of the state governments have added domestic work to the list of scheduled employment, but have stayed short of implementing it on the ground.

The Code on Social Security to extend benefits like insurance, a retirement fund and maternity assistance to workers could be the first step for the states to put into effect. Making registration of domestic workers mandatory could be another important beginning.

Kerala has already begun work on framing laws that would provide for minimum wage and other conditions. The proposed legislation recognises domestic work as formal employment and this will protect workers. It reportedly mandates an eight-hour workday, a weekly off, and social security for domestic workers. Through this legislation, the government plans to fix the accountability of both the employers and agencies through which they are recruited.

It’s time other states took a cue from Kerala.