Introduction

Domestic service is emerging as the largest segment of female employment in India`s service sector. Yet, the exact number of domestic workers is difficult to estimate because many of these workers are often not captured by extant macro-data sources or are spread across fluid categories that are not well defined. One can obtain a rough picture of the size of the sector as well as the growth patterns from the macro data on employment and unemployment. As per the National Sample Survey Organisation (NSSO) estimates in 2004-05, the number of workers employed in private households, largely as domestic workers, are 4.75 million workers. Of these, 3.05 million women are in the urban areas, making the sector prominent for female employment in urban areas. The percentage of domestic workers in total female employment in the service sector increased from 11.8 per cent in 1999-2000 to 27.1 per cent in 2004-05-a phenomenal increase of about 2.25 million in a short span of five years.

Characteristics of Domestic Workers

The category `private household with employed persons`, which is popularly used to estimate the number of domestic workers includes five sub categories namely, housemaid/servant, cook, gardener, gatekeeper/chowkidar/watchman and governess/baby sitter. Of these categories, gardeners and gatekeepers/chowkidars/watchmen are highly male-centred sectors and, hence, need to be separated so that we get a good picture of the feminisation process in the sector.

The female share of the sector is as high as 71.6 per cent, which shows an increasing trend over the period. The housemaid/servant sector shows a high degree of feminisation with 87.4 per cent of the workers being women. The socio-economic characteristics of domestic workers, revealed by the macro data and many micro-level studies, show specific demographic, social and economic characteristics. A large section of the workers are married women in the age group of 21-40. Illiteracy and poor educational achievement are common and the occupation is dominated by lower-caste women.

In the literature on modern domestic service, the growth of domestic service and the above patterns have largely been attributed to the processes of economic development. Industrialisation and urbanisation are said to encourage the market for domestic workers, correlating with a servant-employing middle class and a pool of unskilled workers, consequent to a steep decline in agrarian produce and livelihood security in rural areas.

Wages, Working Conditions and Employment Relations

Domestic work takes place in isolated and private environments, which itself insulates the occupation from many workplace-specific issues. The tasks usually allocated to domestic workers include house-cleaning, laundry, cooking, dish-washing, care of children and the aged, and various other activities associated with the regular and smooth functioning of a household.

An important distinction often drawn in the context of domestic workers is between part-time (often live-outs) and full-time workers (often live-ins). Part-time workers are typically an urban phenomenon with workers undertaking one or more tasks in different households. This characterisation is purely from the point of view of the nature of engagement with any single employer. Part-time workers have some level of independence because they do not stay with the employers.

However, the fragmented nature of their work, the manifold tasks, the multiplicity of employers and the instability of employment pose challenges for these workers. There is no uniformity in the hours of work, number of working days and other conditions of work. Wages vary across regions and even by locality in the same town/city. Apart from the variation across larger divisions such as cook, cleaner and babysitter, wage rates vary within these as well, depending on a number of factors, ranging from purely personal to market-related parameters. Thus, it is difficult to arrive at a uniform daily wage rate for domestic work even for a specified locality. In reality, whatever be the wages, these do not cover the basic necessities of life.

Full-time, or live-in, workers undertake several tasks in one household. They often stay with the employers and are `on call` through the day and night and, thus, normally have longer working hours. They have no fixed time for themselves or for rest. The wages of these workers also show large variation, depending on a host of factors, with no provisions for overtime.

Most domestic workers work seven days a week with no concept of a day off. There is no uniformity in the hours of work, the number of working days and other conditions of work. Even sick leave or negotiated leave often results in a cut in wages. There is no security of employment and they can be dismissed any time for reasons the employers find fit. There are no provisions for any social security in terms of provident fund, health insurance or pension.

The market possibilities of the sector have affected the organisation of the domestic service drastically. In this context, `placement` agencies managed by private entrepreneurs and voluntary associations assume particular significance. There has been an upsurge in the number of agencies/individuals supplying domestic workers especially in metropolitan cities; these are largely driven by profit interest. These agencies vary in the number of workers placed, nature of operations, objectives, services offered to employers as well as workers, and the degrees and parameters of informality. The agencies mobilise large numbers of women (especially unmarried girls) from tribal pockets. Non-payment of wages, elements of forced/bonded labour and the possibility of sexual exploitation (by the middlemen, agents and employers) are among the concerns raised.

Regulating Domestic Work

Domestic workers are largely left out of the purview of the existing labour laws though the conditions of these workers beg legal intervention. The workplace of domestic workers is the employer`s home. A household or home is not considered an `industry` or an industrial workplace, to which labour laws apply. This characteristic has been central in keeping domestic work outside the purview of labour law. Domestic workers are, therefore, not entitled to maternity benefit or other social security, nor are their working conditions or hours of work regulated. The emergence of placement agencies poses further challenges in regulating the sector.

There have been many attempts to regulate the sector since independence. These have failed due to governmental resistance-active or through neglect. The Domestic Workers (Conditions of Service) Bill 1959; All India Domestic Servants Bill 1959; Domestic Workers (Conditions of Service) Bill 1972 and 1977, and The House Workers (Conditions of Service) Bill 1989 are some of the major legislations during the period. However, the government ignored the recommendations of the Committee on the Status of Women in India 1974, and the recommendation of the National Commission on Self Employed Women and Women in the Informal Sector 1988.

Domestic workers were implicitly excluded from the National Minimum Wages Act 1948. Although the benefits of the Act can be extended to domestic workers through state legislations, the present scenario at the state level is not very promising. Barring a few states, the official minimum wage for the occupation is not specified, making workers vulnerable to blatant exploitation.

Despite the mushrooming of placement agencies, currently there are no laws to regulate these. Discussions have focused on the possibilities of a number of existing laws being expanded or new legislation pertaining to informal workers including domestic workers in its ambit. With some modifications, the Inter-State Migrant Workmen (Regulation of Employment and Conditions of Service) Act 1979, the Contract Labour (Regulation and Abolition) Act 1970, and Shops and Establishments Act 1954 could play some role.

The National Commission for Women attempted to address some of these concerns through a Domestic Workers (Registration, Social Security and Welfare) Bill 2008, the fate of which is yet to be decided. The proposal seeks to establish a compulsory registration procedure for all domestic workers, including part-time and full-time workers, the setting up of a Domestic Workers Welfare Fund, the registration of placement agencies, the regulation of working conditions, and the imposition of fines and imprisonment for violation of the provisions of the bill. Though there have been many discussions on  the bill, without consistent campaigning and lobbying, the fate of the bill will not be different from that of earlier ones, given the strong counter-political pressures. The recent efforts of the ILO to introduce a Convention on Domestic Work will strengthen the ongoing efforts in bringing a national legislation into force.