Policy Framework for Domestic Workers

              Under the provisions of the Minimum Wages Act, 1948, both the Central and State Governments are appropriate Governments to fix, review, revise and enforce the minimum rates of wages for different categories of workers employed in the scheduled employments under their respective jurisdictions. ‘Domestic Workers’ falls under the purview of State sphere, wherein, the State Governments are the appropriate Governments to fix, review, revise and enforce the minimum rates of wages for domestic workers under the Minimum Wages Act, 1948.

 Based on the report of the Task Force set up to evolve policy framework for domestic workers, all the State Governments/Union Territory Administrations have been requested to take necessary steps for inclusion of domestic workers as employment in the schedule and for fixing minimum rates of wages for domestic workers. 

 So far, some of the States have included ‘Domestic Workers’ as a scheduled employment under their statute. States such as Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Bihar, Rajasthan and Dadra & Nagar Haveli have recently taken a lead in fixation of minimum rates of wages for these workers. On the basis of the information available from State Governments, a statement showing the minimum rates of wages for Domestic Workers under the Minimum Wages Act, 1948 is as under:

Sl. No.	State/Union Territory	Minimum Wage (in Rs.)
		Per hour	Per day	Per month	Effective date
1	Andhra Pradesh	12.50	100.00	2600.00	01.04.2009
2	Bihar	13.64	109.12	2837.12	01.10.2010
3	Karnataka	10.48 (for 45 minutes)	111.83	2907.70	01.04.2010
4	Kerala	-	136.50	-	30.06.2010
5	Rajasthan	-	155.00	-	01.01.2011
6	Dadra & Nagar Haveli	-	136.60	-	01.07.2010

           

ILO has released two reports viz. ‘Decent Work for Domestic Workers (2010)’ and ‘Moving Towards Decent Work for Domestic Workers’ that focus on children as domestic help/child labour. The Reports highlight problems of domestic workers, child labour, forced labour, conditions of work, wages, remunerations, migration of workers and need for providing social protection, occupational safety and health, regulating domestic work, setting standard for promotion of decent work and  enforcement of labour laws.

 As per Census 2001,the number of children employed as domestic help is 1,85,505. However, the employment of children as domestic help has been banned as per the Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act since October, 2006.

             The Government has enacted the Unorganised Workers’ Social Security Act, 2008 for the social    security and welfare of unorganised workers which includes domestic workers. The Government has also set up a Task Force to evolve a policy frame work for domestic workers in the context of regulatory mechanism and providing  social security.

 This information was given by Shri Mallikarjun Kharge, Minister for Labour and Employment in a written reply to a question in the Rajya Sabha today.

PIB release, March 9, 2011