The issue of providing equal employment opportunities for women and men in the world of work revolves very much around the efforts to transform the conventional gender division of labour and promote equal sharing of care responsibilities between women and men. In view of this, the emergence of domestic work  by which we refer to housework such as sweeping, cleaning utensils, washing clothes, cooking and such other manual work, which is carried out for an employer for remuneration (Bhattacharya and Sinha, 2009)  as  a feminised sector of employment that is growing in significance presents an interesting picture.

Domestic work is an important profession that has, over the years, created an opening in the labour market for poor women from socially disadvantaged communities. The availability of paid domestic service, in turn, helps employers, particularly women, to pursue paid work. The irony of this seemingly mutually beneficial relationship is that it has left the gender division of labour intact, in which women are still, in fact and in society`s expectations, the primary providers of care and household chores. Another very urgent policy matter is that while providing these services, domestic workers themselves are not able to provide quality care for their children and the elderly. In many cases, the children are left behind at home without anyone to look after them (Ibid., 2009) or taken along, which facilitates their entry into child labour. Further, the non-availability of care facilities affects the earning potential of domestic workers because they are not able to work longer hours or travel to higher paying locations. A study by the Institute of Social Studies Trust (ISST) found that domestic workers` wages were self-regulating and determined by tasks performed, the number of tasks and the locality of work (Ibid., 2009). Many studies on domestic workers in India have highlighted the abysmally low wages and inhuman working conditions; it needs to be recognised that freedom from menial housework enjoyed by the employers is built on a very unequal ground.

In 2010, the International Labour Conference (ILC) will embark on a standard setting activity for domestic work. This development has been widely welcomed particularly by trade unions and civil society organisations promoting the rights of domestic workers and putting an end to the exploitative practices. This brief note aims to situate the significance of domestic work among other forms of women`s work in India and highlight some key messages that need to be taken forward in order to make domestic work a vehicle for decent work and gender equality.

Domestic Work in India

While paid domestic work was once a male-dominated occupation in pre-independence India (Neetha, 2004), today women constitute 71 per cent of this sector. The National Sample Survey (NSS) data 2004-05 suggests that 4.75 million workers were employed in private households, of which 3.05 million were urban women. The feminisation is generally attributed to an increase in women searching for paid work as part of survival strategies coupled with changes in employer preference in favour of women because they are considered naturally more adept at housework than men, more reliable and obedient, especially for taking care of babies and the elderly. However, feminisation has also meant a further devaluation of domestic work. (Ibid., 2004)

Domestic work is the largest sector of employment for urban women and an important source of regular employment. Access to regular salaried employment is very important because other options are casual work on daily pay basis or self employment. Domestic work accounts for almost one-quarter (23.2 per cent) of all regular salaried work of women and is next only to the education sector (26.7 per cent). However, even though the women are registered as regular workers, their working conditions may not be qualitatively better than the casual workers (Raju, 2009). For example, the Report on Conditions of Work and Promotion of Livelihoods in the Unorganised Sector by the NCEUS in 2007 (pages 8586, Box 5.1) points out how an overwhelming majority of women domestic help about 84 per cent and 92 per cent in urban and rural areas, respectively get wages much below the minimum wage (Raju, 2009).

As a percentage of the total female employment, domestic work constitutes 2.3 per cent. Most of the women-72.77 per cent-are engaged in agriculture. Next, they are engaged in retail trade (3.02 per cent), education (2.74 per cent), spinning, weaving and finishing of textiles (2.71 per cent), tobacco products (2.38 per cent), private households (2.31 per cent) and so on.  (Raveendran, 2009) The percentage of women engaged in domestic work is not as high as in some other developing countries (where data are available), which is as high as 18.31 per cent in Argentina, 17.10 per cent in Brazil and 16.13 per cent in South Africa. In industrialised countries, the share is smaller, ranging from 2 to 9 per cent (see Table).

Social Background of Domestic Workers

Socially discriminated and backward communities are usually highly represented in domestic work. Various studies and interactions with activists and workers` organisations highlight that domestic workers are from `backward` communities, tribal villages or scheduled caste communities, who have been traditionally cast into a role of subordination and inferiority due to caste, class and gender hierarchies. Prejudice and bias related to social status are reflected very strongly at the workplace for many domestic workers. Caste also affects the type of tasks performed and the wages earned. Thus, certain forms of domestic work such as cleaning toilets or sanitation-related activities are deemed suitable for low-caste women whereas access to better paid jobs such as household cooks are rendered difficult for lower caste groups. Most of the domestic workers are either illiterate or have only a limited amount of schooling.

Towards Decent Work and Gender Equality

Domestic work is an important source of employment for poor women from socially discriminated communities with little or no education. For these women, domestic work is one of the few openings in the labour market for regular paid work. Considering domestic work as no-skilled work, and hence not real work, is one of the main reasons the work is poorly remunerated and regarded. Another problem is the assumption that women have an inherent or natural ability, much more than men, to clean, cook, wash, take care of children, and in this light domestic workers are seen as simply helping the women of the household. As such, the employment relationship is blurred and it is slow to be recognised as a skilled profession.

A recent ILO study (ILO, 2009b) of selected locations in Delhi found that there is a clear skills progression in domestic work, starting from sweeping and cleaning to tasks requiring more skills such cooking, caring for children and elderly and managing household staff in case there is more than one staff in the household`s employ. Even in tasks such as cleaning, the knowledge of specialised products is required to get rid of different stains or to add a polish. The study also showed that the wage levels increased as tasks got more complex. In the absence of formal skills-development opportunities, many workers acquire skills `on the job` and spend a long period of time before moving up to the next skills level. The notion of a career ladder within domestic work can shift the perception of domestic work to `professional service` as well as offer a possibility to move on to other sectors such as hospitality and health at the same time. The Skill Development Initiative for Domestic Work, which is a collaboration between the Ministry of Labour and Employment, the Delhi Government and the ILO, is a good example of establishing a skills structure in domestic work.

In this context, the increased visibility of domestic work, brought about by the ILC standard-setting agenda for 2010 and 2011, is an opportunity to ensure public understanding on two critical points: first, that domestic work is a skilled profession which is `here to stay` with working conditions to match and, second, that `care work` is not free and it is time to put it in the public policy domain. Treating care work as women`s `labour of love` results in the wastage of women`s human capital because it prevents qualified women from entering/ remaining/reentering the labour market and, moreover, compromises the productivity of women`s work, not to mention the impact of the `triple burden` of balancing productive, reproductive and community level work on their well-being. (The intermittent nature of women`s work due to care responsibilities, including drudgeries has been the subject of many women-work studies; see, for example,  Banerjee 2009 and Raju, 2009.)

Professionalising domestic work is not only beneficial to the workers but also to employers. Nonavailability of quality care is one of the reasons for women not returning to the labour market, especially after child birth.

The increase in demand for domestic workers is a reflection of the insufficient public investment towards facilities for child/elderly care and other infrastructure needed to enable workers balance work and family responsibilities. Professionalising domestic work needs to be considered in a broader light of expanding public facilities/support towards `care work`. As a strategy for reconciling work and home life, for reducing poverty and for promoting social protection and gender equality at work, the ILO encourages the development of government-supported or cooperative childcare services. (ILO 2009a). It is particularly important that family care facilities are affordable and accessible for domestic workers and other workers in the informal economy.

Conclusion

The value attached to domestic work as a form of employment and in terms of remuneration is indicative of how the public-both men and women-perceives `care work` or women`s invisible unpaid work; we like to pretend it is not an issue. However, it is the most important enabling or debilitating factor for the pursuit of a career or participation in public spheres. In order to address gender equality across the board, it is first necessary to recognise `care` as an important asset of the household, and paid domestic work as an important service that has been overlooked for its skills content. By recognising its worth, the workers` rights and introducing skills development, we will be able to aid the process of professionalising the sector and benefiting the workers, who mostly comprise women with little or no education/skills and whose career progression by default is limited. Professionalising domestic work will also mean that employers-particularly women-will be able to participate in the workforce with an assurance of the quality of care provided. In terms of policies to support women workers, there is need to shift from relying on private solutions to care to one based on public funding. This not only includes facilities such as crèches relating to family care but also the development of infrastructure for basic needs (food, water and fuel) to reduce women`s time spent on these drudgeries. Among the important issues to address, however, are the domestic workers` child and family care needs. For `decent work for domestic work` to be more than a slogan, we need to progressively improve the situation at the end of the care chain and level the playing field for all.

References

• Banerjee, N. (2009). Integrating Gender into the New Employment Policy. New Delhi:  IL O.
• Bhattacharya, Shrayana and Shalini Sinha. (August 2009). Domestic Workers in India: Background and Issues. Note for an ILO Tripartite Meeting on Domestic Work.
• ILO. (2009a). Decent Work for Domestic Workers: Fourth Item on the Agenda,Report IV(1)  Geneva: ILO.
• ILO. (2009b). Programme Management of Skill Mapping of Domestic Workers in Delhi Region. New Delhi: ILO.
• Neetha N. (2004). "Making of Female Breadwinners: Migration and Social Networking of Women Domestics in Delhi", Economic and Political Weekly, 39 (17)  168-188
• Neetha, N. (2008). "Regulating Domestic Work," Economic and Political Weekly, 43 (37):  26-28
• Raju, S. (2009). Mapping the World of Women`s Work: Regional Patterns and Perspectives. New Delhi: ILO.
• Raveendran, G. (2009). Contribution of Women in the National Economy. New Delhi: ILO.