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Why is the condition of domestic workers seldom discussed in India?
Meenakshi Tewari | The Wire | | Last Updated at June 08 2018 10:21 IST
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“A few months ago, I met with an accident. The doctors at the hospital had given up hope. I am lucky to be alive. Earlier, I used to work at six houses, but none of my employers came to visit me nor offered any help. Somehow, I managed to get through my treatment. When I returned after recovering, I found that all six of my employers had hired new maids. If not financial help, they could at least have given my job back. But for them, we’re good enough only as long as we are working. The moment we are in need of help, they turn their backs on us.”
Anita, a domestic worker, pours her heart out sitting in the park of a DDA society in south Delhi. It is a scorching summer afternoon in the month of May. Anita, who is in her early forties, says that she has been working in the society for the past 16 or 17 years. Her husband does not work. She alone runs the household. After recovering, she has found employment at two houses and is earning Rs 4,000 per month.
Recently, a 15-year-old domestic worker Soni Kumari was murdered for demanding her wage. She had gone missing from Jharkhand and was working in Delhi’s East of Kailash. Until her murder, her family did not know that she was in Delhi.
Traditionally, household work is considered a woman’s responsibility. However, in the last few decades, growing participation of women in office jobs has boosted the income level of India’s middle class. With the changing scenario, the need for domestic workers has also increased. Talking of big cities, young couples and single working professionals are dependent on maids or ‘didis’ as they are often referred to.