On June 12, most newspapers including this one, carried news of a domestic worker who was thrown down from the third floor of a Delhi house by his enraged employer. His crime? A request for a small hike in his salary and a weekly day off. The poor man had worked 12 hours a day with no day off. He was promised a pittance of Rs 2,000 but was actually paid Rs 1,000. Domestic labour is one of the worst forms of labour because it is hidden within the four walls of a home. Both adults and children are hired as domestic help, but adolescents are invariably preferred. Take the Capital. It is estimated there are 134 placement agencies in that city alone, providing domestic labourers from poor rural families. Parents allow their children to go in the hope that they will get a job and do well for themselves and, also, perhaps, help the family out. Quite often, parents are paid a sum of money as an advance or a loan with the agreement that the child’s wages will be adjusted against it. Some children are trafficked on the false assurances of teaching them a trade and continuing their education. These placement agencies are not licenced — there is no regulatory system in this sector. Children and adolescents are hidden away in rooms and basements of the offices of these agencies and are under their total control. Potential employers are asked to pay a fee, plus deposit the first month’s salary—which may range from Rs 2000 to Rs 3,500. Some placement agencies directly receive the salary of the worker and it is anybody’s guess whether the worker actually gets it. There are, at present, no labour laws protecting the rights of domestic workers and therefore they remain the most exploited. In many ways, they are only half a step higher in the ladder than a slave. It is amazing how our retrogressive we can be in attitudes to them. Denied fair wages, they labour long hours—the first to wake up and the last to sleep. They are given poor food, which is often restricted in quantity as well, and no decent private space to sleep or rest. Recreation is unheard of, while the weekly off is not given as a rule. Every one in the household is their boss, even children. There is this case of Seema, a six-year-old child, employed on the pretense that her employers wanted a playmate for their child. She rarely played with the master’s child but spent most of her time doing household chores. When the family went on vacation, her employer sexually abused her. When she cried out in pain he hit her. Seema was kept locked at home, one day she took her chance when the door was open and ran to the neighbour for help. This is just one horror story that slipped out. There are thousands like them. It makes us wonder who should be registered at the police station: The worker or the employer? In fact, domestic helpers should be interviewed, and data gathered on how many of them exist in a city, and under what conditions. What are their wages and how are they treated? An analysis of such data would tell us a great deal about ourselves as a society. Of course, there have been cases of workers stealing and murdering their employers. It is important to be cautious while hiring a worker. Their antecedents need to be checked and the company they keep, monitored. This is sound precaution. But let us also not presume that all domestic workers steal or murder and let us be sensitive in our treatment of them. Every state government should pass an order that no one shall hire a person who has not completed 14 years. The state labour department should be the regulatory body to issue licences and monitor placement agencies. There should be guidelines on the terms and conditions of work, which should be within the framework of existing labour laws—including the mechanism for redressal of grievances. Any placement agency or employer violating the order should be penalised. Those who employ children or ill treat their domestic workers should be socially boycotted and those who violate their rights should be brought to justice. Yes, and for starters, let us erase the word “servant” from our vocabulary. (Both writers are child rights activists)
