Socio-Economic Conditions of Female Domestic Workers in Punjab: A Case Study of Sangrur District

 

Javaid Ahmad Dar

 

ABSTRACT:

The study of socio-economic condition of domestic women workers is important to formulate policies regarding human resource development and women empowerment. Punjab is one of the richest states of India as per the gross state domestic product per capita, and is rich in culture and tradition.  Informal sector constitutes a pivotal part in Punjab economy. Current study aims at understanding the socio-economic condition of domestic women workers in Punjab. To fulfil the objective a sample of 160 domestic women workers collected from different areas of  Sangrur district has been studied. The results have shown that the condition of domestic women workers is vulnerable in Punjab. The wage rate they get is very low compared to their marginal productivity.  The reasons for their vulnerable condition are caste difference, unequal gender relations, poor economic background, irregular work, very little or no bargaining power, lack of credit facilities, drug addiction of their male partners, death of husband and lack of assets.  Given the vulnerable status of domestic women workers of Punjab at home or at work, an increase in their wage rate is inevitable. But increased wage rate alone will not be enough. Their economic empowerment needs to go along with political empowerment, which could improve their bargaining power both at work and in home.

 

 

INTRODUCTION:

Most of the literature available on status of women explores the issues like discrimination and violence against women, sexism, dowry, etc., and also the issues pertaining to women rights and problems of women working in organised sector and to some extent of those who are working in unorganised sector. However, one major issue has received a very little attention in India and especially in Punjab, of women domestic workers, which is a problem that concerns both adult women and young girls. In fact, in Punjab, there has been found only a single study which was conducted nearly three decades back in 1976-77 by Balqis Begum. In that study, the author had focused exclusively on the socio-economic problems of female domestic workers in Nabha town of Punjab state. Though many years have passed away, but these women workers are still prone to similar type of problems. The state has shown complete indifference towards their vows. Hence, it becomes an important subject to examine the economic conditions of female domestic workers in Punjab.

 

 

Since the domestic service is considered as a tedious job, most of the women workers involved in this work come from economically poor families.  

 

As there is no minimum wage fixed and as the Minimum Wages Act does not cover the domestic workers, the employers are free to pay what they want, irrespective of quantum and hours of work.

 

The female domestic workers do not have any claim to any privileges as women workers in offices, schools and other establishments can claim. Further, these women domestic workers do not enjoy any job security, as these matters depend on the moods and fancies of the employer. Similarly, any increment in the pay of the female domestic workers again depends upon the mood of employers. In fact, there are several female domestic workers who have been working for long years under the same employer, without receiving any hike in pay. Hence, there is immense scope for exploitation of these workers, as there is no written contract between the employer and domestic worker. This scope for exploitation further expands with the fact that the bargaining power of these domestic workers is almost zero. They do not have any organisation of their own which can protect their rights.Hence, it is really an important issue to study the economic conditions of female domestic workers. The present paper is a humble attempt in this side.

 

METHODOLOGY:

The paper is based on empirical work which examines the economic conditions of female domestic workers employed in either one or more households. The survey has been conducted in the urban areas of the Sangrur district of Punjab state. In Sangrur district, there are five tehsils, namely Malerkotla, Dhuri, Sangrur, Sunam and Moonak. Among these five tehsils, Dhuri and Sangrur have been selected randomly. The selected tehsils (i.e. Dhuri and Sangrur) constitute four towns namely Dhuri, Sangrur, Longowal and Bhawanigarh. The respondents have been selected from various mohallas/wards of these four towns. The information has been collected from the field through discussion with the female domestic workers. The information has been collected on well structured interview schedules, filled up for 160 female domestic workers (40 for each town). Besides, the simple statistical techniques, such as average and percentage, Chi-Square Test have been used to draw the results.

 

DEFINITION OF FEMALE DOMESTIC WORKERS:

A bill presented in RajyaSabha, entitled ‘The Housemaids and Domestic Servants (Conditions of Services and Welfare) Bill, 2004’, has defined domestic worker as (a) “domestic servant means any person who earns his livelihood by working in household of his employer and doing household chores”, and (b) “housemaid means a woman servant who performs household chores for wages” (GOI, 2004).1:The International Labour Organisation (ILO) broadly defines a domestic worker as “someone who carries out household work in private households in return for wages” ( Kundu, 2007).Unorganised Non-Agricultural Workers’ Conditions of Work and Social Security Bill, 2007, has included the domestic servants into the category of wage workers. According to the bill “Wage worker means a person employed for a remuneration as an unorganised non-agricultural worker, directly by an employer or through any agency or contractor, whether exclusively for one employer or more employers, whether simultaneously or otherwise, whether in cash and/or in kind,whether as a temporary or casual worker, or as a migrant worker, or workers employed by households including domestic workers” (GOI, 2007a).

 

On the basis of above definitions, it can be concluded that a domestic worker is one who carries out the household chores (like cleaning utensils, washing clothes, sweeping and cleaning the floor, cooking or assisting the employer in the kitchen, look after the small children or accompany them to school, etc.) on part-time or full-time basis for one or the more employer for nominal wages.

 

FEMALE DOMESTIC WORKERS IN INDIA:

In ancient times, domestic work, in India, was largely performed by “serfs” who generally belong to lower castes and denied to access education (Gothoskar, 2005). However, employing women as domestic servants is a characteristic of a feudal society. Domestic maid servants, better known in the feudal ages as “Dasis”, are not new to the country (Mahadevan, 1989). Under feudal society, the situation of women domestic workers was quite miserable. Although many centuries have passed away, yet there has seen a very little change in the economic conditions of female domestic workers.

 

In the recent past, the trend shows that all big cities of India have become centres to recruit poor women as domestic workers. The non-availability of jobs in rural or tribal areas facilitates continuous supply of women workers to these cities. A major reason for this is being a sharp increase of middle class women in employment (Deshkal and FES, 2002). These middle class employed women have shifted their household workload to the poor working women as their maids. In some cases, it has been seen that the middle and upper class in order to keep their upward mobility and status symbol have withdrawn themselves from household duties (Gothoskar, 2005). Moreover, employing woman worker also does not cost much.

In India, there is absence of any reliable data about female domestic workers. Although a great deal of literature on women is available, but it does not cover a complete cross-section. A very little information is available on women workers engaged in domestic services, agriculture and construction and also the women workers doing other sundry and piece-meal jobs (Tripathi, 1991).Despite special provisions in the constitution and various legal and administrative measures to improve the status of women, there has been a little change in the socio-economic attitudinal life of the women domestic workers in India. However, few state governments have taken some steps to improve the socio-economic status of women domestic workers. For example, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu states have introduced minimum wages for domestic workers. Karnatka became the first state to fix a minimum living wage for domestic workers in 2004 so as to establish some kind of fairness in wages. It was fixed at Rs. 1600 per month for an eight-hour day of domestic work (Hamid, 2006). In Maharashtra, the State Labour Board issued guidelines regulating the services of domestic workers in 2000. The service rules included paid leave, travel allowance, fairer wages, etc. Similarly, in Kerala and Tamil Nadu, domestic workers are recognised as part of unorganised sector and can also form worker unions (Sharma, 2003). But, these efforts remain half hearted because the most daunting problem for domestic workers still remains that of fair wages, followed by provisions for holidays, a pension or some kind of security after work (Hamid, 2006).

 

WOMEN EMPLOYMENT IN PUNJAB AND SANGRUR DISTRICT:

As in other parts of India, Punjabi society consists of hierarchies based on caste, class and community. Within these hierarchies, there is yet another hierarchy - of gender - women being at the lower rung (GOP, 2004). Though Punjab witnessed high levels of development since Green and White Revolutions, however, these high levels of development did not translate into progress of women. Declining sex ratio, strong preference for male child over female child, big gender gap in literacy and work participation rate are clear indicators of lower socio-economic status of women as compared to men (Kaur, 2005).However, at the same time, it is important to note that there has been a dramatic increase in the spaces available to the women, many of which have been a consequence of state initiatives, through the formulation of gender sensitive programmes, initiatives by NGOs and other civil society groups (GOP, 2004). During the last two decades, there has been seen a considerable improvement in various aspects of both rural and urban women such as literacy rate, overall female work participation rate, percentage share of female workers in total labour force and women employment in organised sector (both in public and private). Further, the female work participation rate among scheduled castes has also improved quite rapidly. Thus, it can be said that though status of women in Punjab is not up to the mark, yet it is improving rapidly. Sangrur is one of the southern districts of the Punjab state. The district takes its name from its headquarters town, Sangrur. According to Census of India 2001, the total area under the district is 5020 sq. km with total population 2000173 and population density 399 persons per sq. km. In terms of area and population, the district has been placed at 3^rd and 5^th ranks respectively (in 2001). Further, the proportion of female population to total population is 46.5 per cent (same for both rural and urban areas). In the district, sex ratio is 871 females per thousand males, while the proportion of scheduled caste female population to total female population is 27.7 per cent. In the district, literacy rate among the female population (i.e. 53.4 per cent) is lower than the state’s literacy rate (i.e. 63.4 per cent), while the gender gap in literacy rate for Sangrur (i.e. 12.4) is higher than that of state’s (i.e. 11.9). But, the women work participation rate is higher in the Sangrur district (i.e. 24.6 per cent) vis-à-vis state’s average (i.e. 18.7 per cent). Similarly, the proportions of female workers to total workers, female main workers to total main workers and female marginal workers to total marginal workers are also higher for Sangrur district (i.e. 28.1 per cent, 22.5 per cent and 68.3 per cent respectively) than those of state’s proportions (i.e. 23.7 per cent, 18.0 per cent and 58.6 per cent respectively).

 

Table 1: Some Socio-Economic Indicators of Women Development in Punjab State and Sangrur  District*  (Census of India 2001)

*Barnala is included here.

Source: Census of India, 2001 (Provisional).

Table 2: Distribution of Respondents according to of their Monthly Earnings

 

 

Table 3: Distribution of Respondents according to their Monthly Earnings and their Present Age

Present Age	Monthly Earnings (Rs.)
	Up to 400	401-800	Above 800	Total
Up to 14	3 (75.00)	1 (25.00)	0 (0.00)	4 (100.00)
15-29	3 (6.00)	28 (56.00)	19 (38.00)	50 (100.00)
30-44	5 (7.24)	34 (49.28)	30 (43.48)	69 (100.00)
Above 44	17 (45.95)	16 (43.24)	4 (10.81)	37 (100.00)
Total	28 (17.50)	79 (49.37)	53 (33.13)	160 (100.00)

Note: Figures in parentheses represent row-wise percentage share.

 

 

 

Table 1 reflects that in case of sex ratio and female literacy rate, Sangrur is far behind the state’s average, but in case of women’s share in the overall employment, the district has out stepped the state by impressive margin. This will surely enhanced the demand for female domestic workers. Hence, it becomes very important to explore the economic conditions of this vulnerable segment of the society in general and of the district in particular. Share in the overall employment, the district has out stepped the state by impressive margin. This will surely enhanced the demand for female domestic workers. Hence, it becomes very important to explore the economic conditions of this vulnerable segment of the society in general and of the district in particular.

 

ECONOMIC CONDITIONS OF FEMALE DOMESTIC WORKERS:

The economic conditions of female domestic workers have been analysed on the basis of two different aspects, viz. their monthly earnings and per capita monthly earnings of their families.

 

(a)   Economic Conditions and Monthly Earnings:

Female domestic workers generally belong to the poor strata of the society. Though, these women workers work hard to earn their livelihood but the returns for this hard work are shockingly low (Manohar and Shobha, 1983; and Kundu, 2007).

 

Table 2 explains that nearly half of the respondents, i.e. 49.38 per cent, are earning between Rs. 401-800 per month, followed by 33.12 per cent earning above Rs. 800 per month and 17.50 per cent earning up to Rs. 400 per month. The lowest monthly earnings of the respondents are found to be Rs. 200 and the highest monthly earnings of the respondents are found to be Rs. 1500. Further, the average monthly earnings of the respondents are found to be only Rs. 842, which is nowhere near to the amount of Rs.2525 per month which is the minimum wage fixed for unskilled manual labour in Punjab (GOI, 2008).

 

(b)   Age and Monthly Earnings

Age of the respondents is closely related with their monthly earnings because the different age groups show the different level of efficiency to work.

 

Table 3 depicts that 3/4^th of the respondents in the age group of up to 14 years (i.e. 75 per cent) earn up to Rs. 400 per month. The main reason for this is that the respondents belonging to this age group are children, who work for lesser hours per day than the respondents belonging to other age groups. Similarly, a significant number of the respondents (i.e. 45.95 per cent) belonging to the age group of above 44 years also earn up to Rs. 400 per month, because most of the respondents in this category are  aged women who prefer to work for lesser hours per day. As far as, the age groups of 15-29 years and 30-44 years are concerned, most of the respondents earn between Rs. 401-800 per month (i.e. 56 per cent and 49.28 per cent respectively) and above Rs. 800 per month (i.e. 38 per cent and 43.48 per cent respectively), because these respondents belong to the economically active middle age groups and work for more hours per day than the earlier mentioned respondents. Thus, it can be concluded that the monthly earnings of most of the respondents in the age groups of up to 14 years and above 44 years are relatively lower than that of the respondents in the age groups of 15-29 years and 30-44 years.

 

(c)   Caste and Monthly Earnings

In our society the work of domestic servants is generally assigned to the lower caste segment of the society. Therefore, the major part of women domestic workers in the present study belong to the lower caste. However, due to the low bargaining power the earnings of these workers are quite low.

 

Table 4: Distribution of Respondents according to their Monthly Earnings and their Caste

Caste	Monthly Earnings (Rs.)
	Up to 400	401-800	Above 800	Total
Upper Caste	0 (0.00)	2 (28.57)	5 (71.43)	7 (100.00)
Lower Caste	27 (19.15)	76 (53.90)	38 (26.95)	141 (100.00)
Backward Caste	1 (8.33)	1 (8.33)	10 (83.34)	12 (100.00)
Total	28 (17.50)	79 (49.37)	53 (33.13)	160 (100.00)

Note: Figures in parentheses represent row-wise percentage share.

 

Table 6: Distribution of Respondents according to their Monthly Earnings and their Marital Status

Marital Status	Monthly Earnings (Rs.)
	Up to 400	401-800	Above 800	Total
Single	6 (30.00)	13 (65.00)	1 (5.00)	20 (100.00)
Married	21 (17.80)	58 (49.15)	39 (33.05)	118 (100.00)
Widow/Separated	1 (4.55)	8 (36.36)	13 (59.09)	22 (100.00)
Total	28 (17.50)	79 (49.37)	53 (33.13)	160 (100.00)

Note: Figures in parentheses represent row-wise percentage share.

 

Table 7: Distribution of Respondents according to their Monthly Earnings and their Migratory Status

Migratory Status	Monthly Earnings (Rs.)
	Up to 400	401-800	Above 800	Total
Migrants	1 (5.56)	4 (22.22)	13 (72.22)	18 (100.00)
Non-Migrant	27 (19.01)	75 (52.82)	40 (28.17)	142 (100.00)
Total	28 (17.50)	79 (49.37)	53 (33.13)	160 (100.00)

Note: Figures in parentheses represent row-wise percentage share.

 

Table 8: Distribution of Respondents according to their Monthly Earnings and Possession of their House

Possession of House	Monthly Earnings (Rs.)
	Up to 400	401-800	Above 800	Total
Own	23 (17.83)	71 (55.04)	35 (27.13)	129 (100.00)
Not Own	5 (16.13)	8 (25.81)	18 (58.06)	31 (100.00)
Total	28 (17.50)	79 (49.37)	53 (33.13)	160 (100.00)

Note: Figures in parentheses represent row-wise percentage share.

χ²_0.5at 2 degree of freedom = 11.57 (greater than the table value 5.99)

 

 

Table 4 shows that the caste-wise distribution of the respondents’ monthly earnings.  As is clear from the table, a sizeable majority of upper caste and backward caste respondents (i.e. 71.43 per cent and 83.34 per cent respectively) earn above Rs. 800 per month, i.e. the highest monthly income category. On the other side, among the lower caste respondents only 26.95 per cent earn above Rs. 800 per month and 73.05 per cent earn below Rs. 800 per month. It is mainly due to the fact that the most of the lower caste respondents are illiterate and their bargaining power is very low. Hence, they agree to work for lesser wages as compared to upper caste and backward caste respondents.

 

(d)   Marital Status and Monthly Earnings

Table 6 demonstrates the distribution of the respondents according to their monthly earnings and their marital status. Due to heavy economic responsibility, a higher percentage of the widow/separated respondents earn above Rs. 800 per month (i.e. 59.09 per cent) as compared to a lower percentages of married and unmarried respondents (i.e. 33.05 per cent and only 5 per cent respectively). In fact, the higher percentage of married and unmarried respondents earn between Rs. 401-800 per month (i.e. 65 per cent and 49.15 per cent respectively). Hence, it can be concluded that most of widow/separated respondents’ monthly earning are comparatively higher than that of married and unmarried respondents.

 

(e)   Migratory Status and Monthly Earnings

Table 7 explains that most of the migrant respondents earn above Rs. 800 per month (i.e. 72.22 per cent). On the other hand, more than half of the non-migrant respondents earn between Rs. 401-800 per month (i.e. 52.82 per cent). It is generally observed that the migrant respondents work for longer hours and in more number of houses as compared to non-migrant respondents. Further, economic condition of the migrant respondents is found to be very poor and, hence, the economic responsibility on the former is comparatively higher than that of the later.

 

(f)    Possession of House and Monthly Earnings

Table 8 examines the relationship between monthly earnings of the respondents and possession of their house.

 

 

Table 9:Distribution of Respondents according to their Per Capita Monthly Family Earnings

 

 

Table 10: Distribution of Respondents according to their Per Capita Monthly Family Earnings and their Present Age

Present Age	Per Capita Monthly Family Earnings
	Below Poverty Line	Above Poverty Line	Total
Up to 14	3 (75.00)	1 (25.00)	4 (100.00)
15-29	14 (28.00)	36 (72.00)	50 (100.00)
30-44	25 (36.23)	44 (63.77)	69 (100.00)
Above 44	21 (56.76)	16 (43.24)	37 (100.00)
Total	63 (39.38)	97 (60.62)	160 (100.00)

Note: Figures in parentheses represent row-wise percentage share.

 

 

Table 11: Distribution of Respondents according to their Per Capita Monthly Family Earnings and their Caste

Caste	Per Capita Monthly Family Earnings
	Below Poverty Line	Above Poverty Line	Total
Upper Caste	0 (0.00)	7 (100.00)	7 (100.00)
Lower Caste	60 (42.55)	81 (57.45)	141 (100.00)
Backward Caste	3 (25.00)	9 (75.00)	12 (100.00)
Total	63 (39.38)	97 (60.62)	160 (100.00)

Note: Figures in parentheses represent row-wise percentage share.

 

 

Table 12: Distribution of Respondents according to their Per Capita Monthly Family Earnings and their Marital Status

Marital Status	Per Capita Monthly Family Earnings
	Below Poverty Line	Above Poverty Line	Total
Single	12 (60.00)	8 (40.00)	20 (100.00)
Married	32 (27.12)	86 (72.88)	118 (100.00)
Widow/Separated	19 (86.36)	3 (13.64)	22 (100.00)
Total	63 (39.38)	97 (60.62)	160 (100.00)

Note: Figures in parentheses represent row-wise percentage share.

 

 

As is clear from the table, most of the respondents who have their own houses earn between Rs. 401-800 per month (i.e. 55.04 per cent), while most of the respondents who have not their own house earn above Rs. 800 per month (i.e. 58.06 per cent). The reason for this difference may be due to the fact that the later have to pay monthly rent for their houses which compel them to earn more. Further, the value of chi-square is found to be higher than the table value which means, there is a significant relationship between the monthly earnings of the respondents and possession of their house.

 

(g)   Economic Conditions and Per Capita Monthly Family Earnings

In order to know the intensity of poverty among the female domestic workers, the economic conditions of the respondents have been further examined on the basis of per capita monthly earnings of their families.

 

 

Table 9 demonstrates that almost 2/5^th of the respondents’ families (i.e. 39.38 per cent) are still below poverty line. Further, the average per capita monthly family earnings are found to be Rs. 641, which are even below the respondents’ own average monthly earnings.

 

(h)   Age and Per Capita Monthly Family Earnings

Table 10 represents that family earnings of only 28 per cent respondents in the age group of 15-29 years and 36.23 per cent respondents in the age group of 30-44 years are below poverty line. Hence, the economic condition of most of the middle aged respondents’ families is found to be better than that of child respondents and higher aged respondents’ families.

 

(i)    Caste and Per Capita Monthly Family Earnings

Table 11 shows the caste-wise differences in the per capita monthly earnings of the respondents’ families. Surprisingly, per capita monthly family earnings of all the upper caste respondents are above poverty line. However, on the other side, per capita monthly family earnings of 25 per cent of backward caste and 42.55 per cent of lower caste respondents are still below poverty line.

 

 

Table 13: Distribution of Respondents according to their Per Capita Monthly Family Earnings and Status of their House

Status of House	Per Capita Monthly Family Earnings
	Below Poverty Line	Above Poverty Line	Total
Katcha	40 (48.19)	43 (51.81)	83 (100.00)
Pacca	6 (15.38)	33 (84.62)	39 (100.00)
Semi-Pacca	17 (44.74)	21 (55.26)	38 (100.00)
Total	63 (39.38)	97 (60.62)	160 (100.00)

Note: Figures in parentheses represent row-wise percentage share.

χ²_0.5at 2 degree of freedom = 12.57 (greater than the table value 5.99)

 

 

Table 14: Distribution of Respondents according to their Per Capita Monthly Family Earnings and their Response towards Question ‘A’

Attitude ‘A’	Per Capita Monthly Family Earnings
	Below Poverty Line	Above Poverty Line	Total
Yes	42 (60.87)	27 (39.13)	69 (100.00)
No	14 (20.29)	55 (79.71)	69 (100.00)
Total	56 (40.58)	82 (59.42)	138 (100.00)

Note: Figures in parentheses represent row-wise percentage share.

(Question ‘A’ - Is your husband/father a drug addict?)

χ²_0.5at 1 degree of freedom = 23.56 (greater than the table value 3.84)

 

Table 15: Distribution of Respondents according to their Per Capita Monthly Family Earnings and the Occupational Status of their Husbands/Fathers

Occupational Status of  Husbands/Fathers	Per Capita Monthly Family Earnings
	Below Poverty Line	Above Poverty Line	Total
Wage Workers	38 (39.18)	59 (60.82)	97 (100.00)
Self-Employed	4 (20.00)	16 (80.00)	20 (100.00)
Non-Workers	14 (66.67)	7 (33.33)	21 (100.00)
Total	56 (40.58)	82 (59.42)	138 (100.00)

Note: Figures in parentheses represent row-wise percentage share.

 

 

(j)    Marital Status and Per Capita Monthly Family Earnings

The economic responsibility on the widow/separated women is generally found to be higher because most of them have to play the role of bread earners for their families. However, even then, their per capita family earnings remain quite low. The similar situation has been found in the case of female domestic workers.

 

Table 12 shows that per capita monthly family earnings of an overwhelming majority of the widow/separated respondents (i.e. 86.36 per cent) are below poverty line, followed by single/unmarried respondents (i.e. 60 per cent) and married respondents (i.e. 27.12 per cent). Hence, it can be concluded that the economic conditions of most of the widow/separated respondents is worse than that of other respondents.

 

(k)   Status of House and Per Capita Monthly Family Earnings

Table 13 shows the distribution of the respondents according to per capita monthly family earnings and their housing conditions. The percentage analysis shows that 48.19 per cent of the respondents’ families with Katcha house are living below poverty line, followed by 44.74 per cent of the respondents’ families with Semi-Pacca house and 15.38 per cent of the respondents’ families with Pacca house. Thus, it can be concluded that the living conditions (or housing conditions) of these workers greatly depends upon their per capita monthly family earnings. Similarly, the value of chi-square, which is found to be greater than the table value, also shows that living conditions of the respondents are significantly associated with their per capita monthly family earnings.

 

(l) Anti-Social Habits of Husband/Father and Per Capita Monthly Family Earnings

Drug addiction is a serious problem in India and especially in Punjab. Many families are the victims of drug addiction habit of their male members. This is also the case with female domestic workers.

 

Table 14 shows that nearly 3/5^th of those respondents whose husbands/father are drug addicts (i.e. 60.87 per cent) are living below poverty line. While, on the other side, comparatively a less percentage of those respondents whose husbands/fathers are not drug addicts (20.29 per cent) are living below poverty line. Further, the value of chi-square is also found to be greater than the table value which shows that the per capita monthly family earnings of the respondents vary significantly with the drug addiction habit of their husbands/fathers.

(m)  Occupational Status of Husband/Father and Per Capita Monthly Family Earnings

In the present study, it has been found that the economic conditions of those respondents whose husbands/fathers are self-employed are comparatively better than that of those whose husbands/fathers are either wage workers or non-workers.

 

Table 15 explains that more than 3/5^th of those respondents whose husbands/fathers are non-workers (66.67 per cent) and nearly 2/5^th of those respondents whose husbands/fathers are wage workers (i.e. 39.18 per cent) are living below poverty line. On the other side, only 1/4^th of those respondents whose husbands/fathers are self-employed (i.e. 25 per cent) are living below poverty line. Hence, it can be concluded that the economic conditions of those respondents whose husbands/fathers are self-employed are comparatively better than that of others.

 

FINDINGS AND CONCLUSION:

Economic conditions of the female domestic workers are quite vulnerable. The analysis of economic conditions of the respondents on the basis of their monthly earnings shows that monthly earnings of majority of the respondents in the age groups of up to 14 years and above 44 years are relatively lower than that of the respondents in the age groups of 15-29 years and 30-44 years. Monthly earnings of the lower caste respondents and Sikh respondents are also found to be lower than that of others. The monthly earnings of the migrant respondents are found to be relatively higher than non-migrant respondents because the former prefer to work for longer hours. Due to the heavy economic responsibility, widow/separated respondents and those who have rented houses have to work for more hours and in more number of houses and, thus, they earn more. Similarly, the per capita monthly family earnings of the respondents show that the economic condition of these women workers is very weak. The per capita monthly family earnings of most of the respondents in the age groups of up to 14 years and above 44 years are found to be below poverty line. Similarly, the per capita monthly family earnings of most of the schedule caste and widow/separated respondents are found to be below poverty line. Nearly half of those respondents who have either Katcha house or Semi-Pacca house are living below poverty line. Further, the per capita monthly family earnings of majority of those respondents whose husbands/fathers are drug addicts and those whose husbands/fathers are non-workers are below poverty line. Hence, though all the respondents belong to the poor section of the society but the above mentioned respondents are found to be the poorest of the poor section of the society.

 

To improve the overall economic conditions of these female domestic workers, the following suggestions are given:

1:  Keeping in mind their workload in a house for a day or so, their wage rate should be fixed and there must be a provision for time to time increments in their wages. Further, these workers must be covered by the Minimum Wages Act of the respective State governments.

2: To improve the economic conditions of the families of the respondents, the Self-Employment Scheme must cover the poor families of these workers. Further, the government should also introduce some additional employment schemes in the area, so that their husbands and children can get some profitable work.

3:  In the present study, the economic conditions of widows/separated respondents are found to be very poor. Hence, to improve their economic conditions, they must be provided some financial help. These respondents and their children must also be specially considered in the provision of social security benefits.

4:  The female domestic workers must be registered under the Trade Union Act. This effort will enable them to enjoy their strength, unity and also satisfy their grievances towards their employers through different kinds of pressure building and bargaining strategies.

5:  The study has found that exactly half of the respondents’ families are negatively affected by anti-social habits of their husbands/fathers (like drug addiction). There is a need to start some Drug Counselling Centres in the area, so as to cover these families and to overcome their problems. Thus the state government must take the immediate steps, including the above mentioned recommendations, so that the condition of this section of the society can be improved.

 

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT:

This research paper would not have been possible without the support of many people. I wish to express my gratitude to my Lecturer, Prof. Dr. Jasdeep Kaur Dhami who was abundantly helpful and offered invaluable assistance, support and guidance. Special thanks also to my friends and classmates; Asma Khanam , Zahoor Mir, Naseer Ganie, Lone Umar and Manishaka Jean Bosco for sharing the literature and invaluable assistance. I would also like to convey thanks to the Lovely Professional University for providing unperturbed internet facilities. Most importantly I wish to express my love and gratitude to my beloved mother Jameela Akhter for her understanding, endless love, support and encouragement through the duration of my studies

 

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