Does The Minimum Wage Actually Reduce Salaries?

Eight years ago domestic workers were included in the statutory scheduled category of Rajasthan for minimum wages. I would rather say that this is a well intended move, but can barely provide for the basic needs of a domestic worker and her family.

The new notification issued by Rajasthan government to fix the minimum wages of a domestic worker at Rs 5,612 per month, for eight hours of work, contradicts the demand put forth by their own government at the Centre, which in August 2015 sought to set it at Rs 9,000 per month as part of a national policy.

Why:

The notification states that a domestic worker has to be paid Rs 705 per month, per four-member household. 

Situation faced is that where a worker, who shuttles between three to four households on an average in a day, according to the newly fixed wage will only end up making anywhere between Rs 2,800 and Rs 3,500 per month.

In this particular instance, her monthly wage is even lesser than the minimum wage for unskilled workers set by the same government! 

If we stretch this argument further, according to a 1982 order of the Supreme Court, anyone who is paid lesser than the minimum wage could be considered to be employed in a situation of forced labour. 

Ironically this notification likely goes against the spirit of the Constitution that Ambedkar Shahab drafted and the Fundamental Rights (Constitution of India recognises Forced Labour as a violation of the Fundamental Rights) enshrined in it for every citizen.

 Women workers’ unions,  criticized the notification, like the Rajasthan Mahila Kaamgar Union, which have been demanding Rs 1,500 instead of the newly notified Rs 705.

It is pertinent to mention here that majority of households hire domestic workers specifically on work basis, and therefore new minimum wage at Rs 5,642 is hardly applicable in most cases. More often than not, Rs 705 per month is what is going to be followed as a benchmark. Employer is not bounded for other perk  like food, clothes, accommodation and so on are not legally binding on the part of employer.

In this case, workers’ organisations should be demanding for statutory minimum wage, which shall not be less than Rs 10,000; an amount arrived at by workers-led unions through consultative processes and negotiations with the government.

Noted that the notification is also silent on compulsory paid leave and social security. 

Independent estimates point to close to 300,000 women engaged in domestic work. Formations such as Rajasthan Mahila Kaamgar Union claim that 80 per cent of these are migrant workers, who are faced with extreme vulnerability and distressing forms of exploitation. 

Need of the hour is to revise the National Minimum Floor Wage urgently, to the levels promised at the Inter-Ministerial negotiations with Central Trade Unions, held in August 2015, which was at the rate of at least Rs 273 for eight hours of work. 

It is also important to extend minimum social security to 93 per cent of India’s informal work force, which includes domestic workers. Else, piecemeal notifications like these are barely in the interest of the workers.