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Members of
The All India Students Federation shout slogans and wave placards
during a
protest in front of the US consulate in Hyderabad on December 19,
2013
(AFP/File)
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Mumbai —
Americans were shocked at the alleged $3.31-per-hour wage paid to an Indian
diplomat's housekeeper in a case that has sparked global outrage. But to Rupa
Thakur, who does the same job in Mumbai, it sounded like a small fortune.
The
mother-of-three works 13 hours a day, six days a week for a family in the
suburbs of India's financial capital, taking home 8,000 rupees ($130) a month
-- or about 38 US cents an hour.
"Life
is tough," said Thakur, 39, who moved to the city from Nepal as an
uneducated girl to find work.
"After
daily expenses and paying my children's school and college fees, I can save
only around 2,000 rupees. With everything getting costlier every day, it is
difficult for people like us."
India
erupted in fury last week over America's strip-search and arrest of an Indian
diplomat accused of underpaying her housekeeper. But the story of the maid
herself has received far less attention back home.
Domestic
service is a prominent feature of life in urban India, with a maid seen as a
stamp of middle-class membership. Many of those who can afford it also have
drivers, cooks and nannies.
Too many
hours, too little cash
Such
workers often start as young women or girls, like Thakur, who travel from rural
areas to try to make a living and support their families, but who often end up
working too many hours for too little cash, activists say.
While New
York rigidly enforces laws to ensure even the lowliest employees get no less
than $7.25 an hour, such legislation is almost entirely absent for Indian domestic
workers.
"They
need some kind of standardised wage practice in force," said Mumbai social
worker Avisha Kulkarni, who campaigns on the issue.
There are
also frequent reports of domestic servants being abused by their wealthy
employers.
In
November, a New Delhi court ordered an Indian lawmaker and his wife to be held
in police custody for allegedly torturing to death a maid at their home.
The case
came soon after a teenage maid was rescued from another upscale Delhi home by
police and social rights campaigners, who said she had been slashed with knives
and mauled by dogs.
The Global
Slavery Index, released in October, found an estimated 13.95 million people in
India are victims of forced labour -- making up almost half of the world's
slave population. Domestic service is a key area of concern.
"The
central government has completely ignored the conditions of domestic
workers," said Anannya Bhattacharjee, executive council member of the New
Trade Union Initiative, who is based in northern Haryana state.
"It's
part of Indian feudal tradition. There's always talk of domestic workers being
part of the family but they want to be treated as workers," she said.
But there
are also signs of change within the industry.
While
demand remains high, Kulkarni said fewer women were willing to serve as live-in
maids for one household, preferring to work at a number of homes and charge per
task, such as cleaning utensils or washing clothes.
"The
standard and cost of living has gone up," Kulkarni said, adding that many
maids had high aspirations for their children and wanted them well-educated.
"They
treat us so rudely"
This was
the case for Pushpa Khude, another housekeeper in Mumbai, who financed her two
children's college education and whose son is now a bank manager.
Khude, 45,
cleans and cooks in several households and takes home 24,000 rupees ($385) a
month -- a relatively high sum for her job in India -- after starting work at
the age of six watering plants for a Bollywood actor.
Nowadays
she only works for expatriates, with no desire to take on Indian employers.
"I'm
Indian, but I'm disappointed because other Indians aren't giving us (maids)
respect or any responsibility," she said.
"They
treat us so rudely and they don't trust us or give us holiday."
US attorney
Preet Bharara, the prosecutor who spearheaded Khobragade's arrest proceedings,
wondered why there was little concern in India for the maid and her family.
"One
wonders why there is so much outrage about the alleged treatment of the Indian
national accused of perpetrating these acts, but precious little outrage about
the alleged treatment of the Indian victim and her spouse?" he said in
comments earlier this week.
Meenakshi
Ganguly, South Asia director at Human Rights Watch, points out that millions of
mostly women and girls perform "crucial jobs" around the world as
domestic helpers, often enabling employers to pursue careers.
But she
said that in India and elsewhere, they remain "among the most
exploited", despite a new international treaty adopted in 2011 to improve
their rights.
"India
should sign the Domestic Workers Convention, encourage domestic workers to
organise, and ensure that their complaints of abuse, including sexual abuse,
are promptly addressed," Ganguly said.
"Quite
often domestic workers fear reprisals and don't come forward with their
complaints. Proper witness protection systems should be provided."
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A domestic helper from Mindoro island gathers hanging clothes in Manila on
September 6, 2012 (AFP/File, Jay Direct
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