Describing the development of the Rajasthan Mahila Kamgar Union in Jaipur, from being an informal discussion group to building greater organisational strength and commitment through concrete achievements on the issues of working conditions, Mewa Bharati enumerates the obstacles to unionisation and the possible ways of overcoming these, especially how the challenges related to the acceptance of migrant domestic workers among local workers are addressed.

As in many cities of India, Jaipur (Rajasthan) has an increasing number of domestic workers-both live-in, full-time and live-out, part-time workers. There are no studies on the live-in workers in the region. A study (undertaken by the author as part of a fellowship provided by JAGORI. For details, see Mehrotra, Surabhi T, 2008, Rights and Dignity: Women Domestic Workers in Jaipur,  New Delhi: JAGORI) shows that the part-time domestic workers in Jaipur are from different parts of Rajasthan, West Bengal, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh. Some of them had worked as construction workers whereas others switched to domestic work for a short time when they were unable to find any construction work.

The author`s association with domestic workers began with her work with  construction workers earlier this decade, which involved addressing cases of wages being withheld, compensation for injuries or death and sexual harassment. This period also saw constant interaction with domestic workers because they lived in the same localities. Some of them approached the author for assistance when they faced problems related to wages. This resulted in frequent interactions with domestic workers and an understanding of the problems related to working and living conditions.

During the course of the study, small groups of domestic workers came forth with their issues and gradually began to meet regularly, especially in the slums of Sanjay Nagar, Sushilpura and Fauji Nagar. When efforts to reach out to more domestic workers were made, many did not see the purpose of such meetings. Others refused to accept that they worked as domestic workers. However, once the group resolved a few cases of wages being withheld by the employers, more women started attending these meetings. The meetings varied from small groups of four or five to groups of thirty or forty women. The findings of the study were discussed with the workers during the meetings or there were discussions on wages or how many of them were not allowed to use toilets at their employers` homes. Dignity of work, and the need to have domestic work recognised as dignified work and to see themselves as workers with rights were some of the issues brought up at these meetings. The successful rescue of a child domestic worker further brought the group together. In course of time, domestic workers began sharing their personal experiences of domestic violence, which were then handled by the local group.

The idea of starting a formal group in the form of a union was initiated. Some women were skeptical saying that their husbands and employers would react sharply and they might even lose their jobs. Several discussions about the strength of a collective and the successful resolution of some of the cases gave these workers, about 200 in number, the confidence to support the formation of the union. A few workers participated in the discussions on office bearers. It was decided that the union should be called Mahila Kamgar Union (Women Workers` Union) and not Domestic Workers Union, to include workers who move between domestic and construction work. The Rajasthan Mahila Kaamgaar Union was registered in June 2008.

The union is a member-based one, with an annual registration of Rs 10. Initially, the office bearers would have to go to the homes of domestic workers to register them; in course of time, they started coming to the drop-in centre, which also serves as the office of the union, located adjacent to the slum where most workers reside. In about 18 months, the strength of the union rose to 630.

Cases of accusations of theft, domestic violence and sexual harassment in public spaces (often faced by daughters of domestic workers) led to many visits to the local police stations. The successful resolution of these cases not only gave the workers the confidence to seek the help of the police but also to challenge their employers, especially when accused of theft. The discussions in the union meetings instilled confidence in the workers to demand more wages and paid leave. Some workers now take four days paid leave in a month. Some are beginning to demand increments. Discussions in the group regarding these issues encourage others to follow. Besides advice on issues related directly to their work, the union has become a platform for women to get more information about the welfare policies of the state government such as old age pension. The union assists them in applying for such schemes. Both domestic workers and other community women participate in events such as Women`s Day Celebrations or Domestic Workers` Day. Further, regular capacity building sessions, held by JAGORI, a Delhi-based women`s resource centre, also provide the women an opportunity to discuss a range of issues such as gender, health, domestic violence and violence at the workplace.

Interestingly, the local domestic workers were critical of the migrants, especially those working in a large number of houses, for taking away the work of the locals. This prevented the recent migrants from attending the meetings and sharing their problems. The problems of the newer migrants were discussed regularly with the local women. At the same time, continuous interactions gave these migrants the confidence to attend the meetings. These differences surface regularly at the meetings and are handled by the union leaders.

The activists in Rajasthan, especially Jaipur, discussed minimum wages for domestic workers with the state government. Representatives of domestic workers participated in these discussions and presented their working conditions and demands. The government notified the wages of domestic workers as Rs 83 per day. Negotiations for higher wages are on, with the union demanding minimum wages of Rs 120 per day.

A separate legislation will give domestic workers their rights and dignity as workers. Part-time workers have multiple employers, with no standard structure for wages and leave. The separate legislation will ensure that the same standards are applicable to all workers even if they migrate to different parts of the state or, in some cases, the country. The ILO Convention on domestic work will further pressurise the Indian government to have a national legislation on domestic work, leading to recognition of domestic work and to workers getting their due rights. The discussions on the rights of domestic workers will necessarily involve the participation of employers. The focus, in the future, will be to work with employers, making them aware that their domestic helpers are actually workers with rights while advocating for higher minimum wages with the state government. The union is in the process of moving to other areas where domestic workers live in large numbers and hopes to reach out to a larger group on the issue of rights and dignity.

• The author would like to thank JAGORI, a Delhi-based women`s resource centre, for their support and Surabhi T. Mehrotra and Chaitali Haldar for their support comments on the paper and for translating it into English.