Without the assistance of domestic help, citizens say they would never be able to do their daily chores. Women workers say they help families with cooking, doing the dishes, dusting, cleaning and washing and importantly, carrying on with their busy lives smoothly.
Women work in multiple households from 9 am to 5 pm, working in each house for an hour or two. Vanita Gandhi, a domestic help, said, “I have been working as a help for the last four years. I help six households in Andheri and Jogeshwari in cooking and cleaning from 10 am to 3 pm. I have a son and a daughter, I support their education with my salary.”
Ananta Raju Koli, who works in 7-8 homes, said, “I work from 7.30 am to 5pm every day. I help in cooking and cleaning. I am a single parent and support the school education of my 5-year-old daughter. I love my work, as I receive a lot of goodwill and support from the families I work for.”
Talking to the FPJ, Shardha Pandit, managing director at an IT company, said, “If my help does not turn up, the entire day goes for a toss. My husband and I depend on the help as we both are working and need help for chores.”
While Mukesh Nair, a businessman, said, “The help does all our chores. We plan the entire day when cooking and cleaning are over. We will be paralysed without a domestic help.”
“Pay helps decently and respect,” said both citizens and domestic workers.
Hiraki Gangotri, a domestic help, said, “It is important for us to get sufficient timely pay.”
While, Kirti Jain, a social worker, said, “Apart from money, we must respect women who work tirelessly as domestic help. They work for long hours and help us complete our daily chores. Without them, our life would be difficult to even think about.”
