Domestic helps denied entry by house owners

Gurugram: Even though the Haryana Government allowed the services of domestic help to be utilised in between 7:00 am to 7 pm, many residents in Gurugram are still not comfortable with the arrangement. With most of the owners not even willing to pay the remuneration amount, this has only increased the financial difficulties of thousands of maids in the city.

Out of work for month-and-a-half and facing acute shortage of cash, most of the domestic maids on Monday started going to the homes in Gurugram with the hope to earn their livelihood. Much to the disappointment of most of these maids, the owners did not allow them to resume the activities citing that there was still risk involved in contracting the infection of COVID-19.

The hopes of some of these maids were further dashed when they came to realise that they would not be getting the remuneration for the month of April also. Poignant moments could also be witnessed in some of the residential societies where the domestic maids came with their young children aged as less as three to four years so that the owners could allow them to work.

"I used to earn Rs 3,500 per house by cleaning utensils and sweeping. Today I am struggling to find work as most of the houses am still not willing to take me. My husband who works a peon in the corporate office is also been out of work for two months, "said Shanti who works as a domestic help in Sector-52 and Ardee City

The distress and anger of the labourers was again witnessed when a large number of construction workers at Suncity Township in Sector-54 staged a protest demanding that they should be sent to their hometowns.