JOIN USDomestic workers struggle as work gets harder to come by
For the unorganised sector, the pandemic has been a nightmare. With many returning to their hometowns, domestic workers are finding themselves without a job. For those who have been lucky enough to hold on to one, the neglect from employers has made life difficult.
However, the pandemic has simply unfurled a system of abuse, says Geetha Menon with Domestic Workers Rights Union (DWRU). In June 2011, the International Labour Organisation Domestic Workers Convention became the first international labour standard to guarantee domestic workers the same basic rights as those available to other workers. These include limits on hours of work, weekly days off, minimum wage, payment of overtime, and clear terms and conditions of employment. India has not ratified the convention, leaving domestic workers in a vulnerable position.
“You also need to define what ‘decent work’ is. Casteist and discriminatory attitudes are extremely prevalent in these questions,” says Geetha. When people started working from home, many told their workers to not come back or were told that they would be called. “Around 50-55 per cent have not been taken back. People like to say that because they are “coming from outside” they will bring in the virus,” she says. She also cites an example of a woman, who stopped the services of a help, until she contracted the virus herself to point out the hypocrisy. “When the lockdown was declared, the worker went home. Three days later, she developed a fever and passed away. So what is the responsibility of the employer?” she says.
Many have lost wages during this time period. “It’s not their fault that there is a lockdown. They are not taking leave. It is the employer’s duty to look into the security of their employees,” she says. While the world tried to slowly return to normalcy, many house helps also returned. “But the extent of work and hence, their salary reduced. Some households reduced the work within their homes, and asked them to do the work that they could do outside such as tending to the garden or washing clothes,” she says.
This lockdown, once again, domestic help was barred from many housing areas, as per the directives of the Resident Welfare Associations (RWAs). “The associations took a stand. So even in cases when the individual employees wanted, the RWA did not allow them to have their help return,” she says.
Instances of sexual abuse, harassment, and verbal abuse have also been high, says Ruth Manorama, founding member of Bruhat Bangalore Gruhakarmika Sangha (BBGS)
Vaccination for employment
Many have started placing vaccination as a condition for employment. “The BBMP also issued an order stating that an RT-PCR test should be conducted for workers once in 15 days. So, in between all of this they should travel to hospitals, making them more vulnerable,” Geetha says. Such an order, if necessary, must be applicable for all employee groups, she adds.
Ruth says, “Employees want to help themselves and family members avoid getting infected, so they have been insisting that the help also get vaccinated.” But, many women are not really intent on getting vaccinated. “They also advise them to restrict themselves from stepping out,” she says. That being said, there have been no instances of the employers paying or arranging for the vaccination, she adds.
Vicious cycle
The majority of domestic workers are women. When they lose their job or has a salary cut, the entire family is affected. “Most of their husbands are street vendors or belongs to unorganised sectors, all of which deal with similar situations. Many belong to single working households. Women workers tend to be the mainstay of the family and often the responsibility of child education, healthcare and ration is put on them,” says Geetha.
There are many households that are having just one meal a day. “Men drink. It is a daily grind. Now, women are starting to be angry and frustrated,” she says. This is the time, employers should come forward for the people who worked for them for years.
This data, she adds, is not applicable to the live-in-migrant domestic workers. “We can’t get any information about them and the labour department is not interested.” Most domestic workers don’t have proper housing. They live in rented spaces in slums, that tend to be cramped. “The lockdown is making many of them feel the pressing need for better housing. With all members of the house stuck at home, tensions tend to run high,” explains Ruth. Lack of work and reduced pay have increased their financial burden. “Apart from having to pay rent and take care of food, they also have had to buy gadgets so children can attend online classes. Many have been forced to borrow and take loans for this,” she says.
Relief by government
In May, when the State government announced financial aid for various sectors, it announced that relief ranging from Rs 2,000 to domestic workers. “They are in debt. That amount does nothing,” says Geetha. The labour commissioner offered ration kits, but they also prove to be useless. “They are surviving, but they need money to pay rent, fees and bills,” she says.
However, even to receive this amount, many formalities are involved. “They need an affidavit signed by a gazetted officer stating that the party is, in fact, a domestic worker. We had to explain to these women what a gazetted officer is. Besides, many are scared to sign such an affidavit because what proof do they have?” says Ruth. Documents such as their Aadhaar card and BPL card have to be submitted.
They are required to have a bank account, and the number registered on your Aadhaar to be your current number of communication. “On top of all this, they have to register online. I got four boys, from the tech field, to help register these women. Each of them was able to only complete four registrations as the server is so bad,” she says.
Those who have lost family members to the infection have also had to deal with government apathy. “Those who were treated at home do not get certification and hence, they don’t receive government aid,” says Ruth.
The government needs to ensure that they receive better compensation and issue an order preventing people from non-payment of salaries or dismissal during a lockdown, says Geetha.
What’s the solution?
Geetha says that the first step is recognition. “Acknowledge that they are workers and contributors to the economy,” she says. Employers need to come together and take a stand. “Take all the precautions you need, but make it easy for them to work,” she adds.
Last lockdown
In June 2020, the Domestic Workers Rights Union (DWRU), Bruhat Bangalore Gruhakarmika Sangha (BBGS) and Manegelasa Kaarmikara Union prepared a report on the invisibilisation of domestic workers under the Covid-19 pandemic. The report stated that an estimated 4 lakh domestic workers live and work in Bengaluru, with a majority being women. As a part of the report, a survey of nearly 2,400 domestic workers in Bengaluru was conducted. Until lockdown, most domestic workers went to work as usual. While precautions were announced, employers asked them to “come for work disregarding any concerns for workers’ safety”. But, by the time lockdown was announced, things changed. About 87 per cent of the workers were told not to come for work since the lockdown in March. They were not sure if and when they would be called to work again, as per the survey. As many as 341 workers in the areas surveyed by BBGS (87%) and 150 workers in the areas surveyed by Manegelasa Kaarmikara Union lost their jobs entirely during the lockdown. 91 per cent of workers lost their salaries for the month of April, while 50 per cent of all workers above the age of 50 lost their jobs during the lockdown.