The Double Burden of Domestic Workers: Ensuring Decent Work and the Right to Care to Build Caring Societies

Domestic workers are individuals employed in private households to perform tasks such as cleaning, cooking, childcare, elderly care, gardening, and other household duties. They play a crucial role in supporting the daily lives of millions of families, enabling others to work outside the home. However, domestic work is often undervalued and informal, with workers facing low wages, long hours, and lack of legal protection. Most domestic workers are women, and many belong to marginalised communities, making them vulnerable to exploitation, abuse, and discrimination.

Domestic workers play an indispensable role in our households and society, yet they remain one of the most marginalized and unprotected groups of workers. They juggle a double burden—caring for the homes and families of others while struggling to ensure their own economic and social well-being. The situation in Nagaland is no different, where thousands of domestic workers, largely women, toil in the shadows of an unregulated economy, their rights largely ignored by the system.

Domestic work, though critical, remains part of the unorganised sector, which means that domestic workers are left without the protection of minimum wage laws and other essential labour rights. In Nagaland, domestic workers are not enrolled under the Schedule of Employment—a list that determines which categories of workers are entitled to receive a minimum wage and other benefits. The absence of this crucial recognition means that these workers have no guarantee of fair wages, paid leave, or even safe working conditions. They remain vulnerable to exploitation, often facing erratic work hours, underpayment, and in some cases, abuse.

This lack of legal protection exacerbates the “double burden” these workers face. On the one hand, they are responsible for the care and well-being of their employers’ households, providing essential services like cooking, cleaning, and child-rearing. On the other, they often struggle to balance their own family responsibilities, with little to no institutional support. Many domestic workers are the sole breadwinners of their families, working long hours for meagre pay, with no time or resources to care for their own children or elderly relatives. This imbalance not only affects the domestic workers themselves but also perpetuates a cycle of poverty and inequality, particularly for women.

In many parts of the country, various states have recognised the need to address the plight of domestic workers, with some moving to implement protective legislation, including minimum wage laws and social security schemes. Unfortunately, Nagaland has yet to catch up, leaving domestic workers in a precarious position.

A significant step toward alleviating the burden on these workers is to include domestic workers in the Schedule of Employment in Nagaland. Such inclusion would ensure that they are entitled to a fixed minimum wage, just like other workers in the formal sector. It would also open doors for them to access social security benefits, including health insurance, maternity leave, and pension schemes, which are crucial for the long-term well-being of workers who are often too poor to access these services on their own.

Moreover, as we work to improve conditions for domestic workers, we must also recognize their right to care. Just as they provide essential care to their employers’ families, they deserve the right to care for their own families. This means not only improving their wages and working conditions but also providing them with adequate rest, personal time, and access to support systems like childcare, health services, and education for their children. A more caring society must be built on the foundation of fairness and empathy for those who provide care.

The struggle of domestic workers in Nagaland is a reflection of a larger societal failure to recognise the value of care work, both paid and unpaid. As we strive to build a more just and equitable society, we must ensure that the rights and dignity of domestic workers are upheld. This begins with recognising their role as essential workers, advocating for their inclusion in labour laws, and ensuring that they are provided with the same protections and benefits as any other worker.

Ensuring decent work for domestic workers is not just a matter of economic justice; it is a moral imperative. It is only by addressing their struggles that we can begin to build a truly caring society—one where the rights and dignity of all workers are respected, and where care is valued as the essential foundation of our social fabric.

To conclude: The International Labour Organisation (ILO) Convention 189, adopted in 2011, has been a key international framework promoting the rights and dignity of domestic workers. It’s been now 13 years after it adoption. What has been done for them? Why are we still quite? What is our concern for their safety and Protection?

It is high time now! Need to wake up that policymakers and civil society in Nagaland take up the cause of domestic workers. By ensuring they are enrolled in the Schedule of Employment and advocating for decent wages, fair treatment and minimum wage .We can begin to alleviate their double burden only by valuing their contributions. So can we build a society that truly cares for all its members?

Sr. Pramila Lobo UFS

MSW (Medical & Psychiatric Social Work, LLB)

Director, Assisi Centre Dimapur, Nagaland