Domestic workers News

There are no social security benefits like pension and ESI (Employees’ State Insurance) for domestic workers The National Platform for Domestic Workers (NPDW), which was constituted in 2012, has been highlighting the demands of domestic workers A large majority of employers of these helps believe in the traditional divide between who they consider as "masters" and "servants".

The new draft policy however does not prescribe a minimum wage for a domestic worker, although the earlier draft a couple of years ago had proposed a minimum salary of Rs 9,000 per month for the skilled full-time domestic help along with a host of benefits including social security cover and mandatory leave.

As part of its vision to provide health insurance for all, the government will bring domestic workers under the ESIC fold and soon launch pilot projects in Delhi and Hyderabad in this regard, Union Labour Minister Bandaru Dattatreya said.

To protect the interest of domestic workers, the government is readying a national policy that proposes a minimum salary of Rs 9,000 per month for the skilled full-time household helps, along with a host of benefits including social security cover and mandatory leaves.