about domestic work

What is domestic work?

Domestic work is one of the oldest occupations in the world and is an important job for millions of people, representing up to 10 per cent of total employment in some countries.

Domestic workers perform a range of tasks in private homes including cooking, cleaning, laundry, taking care of children and the elderly, and running errands. Some domestic workers also live in their employer’s homes.

Who are domestic workers?

Women and girls make up the overwhelming majority of domestic workers worldwide, although in some countries a significant number of men and boys are domestic workers. The International Labour Organization (ILO) estimates that more girls under the age of 16 work in domestic service than in any other category of child labour.

Some domestic workers are migrant workers from other countries. Others have moved within their own country, often from rural areas to the city, to take up employment. Some work in their home community. For many, domestic work is one of the very few options available to enable them to provide for themselves and their families.

What problems do domestic workers face?

Domestic work is poorly regulated, undervalued, and many domestic workers are subject to serious abuses, including slavery.

Domestic workers often work excessively long hours, without breaks, days off or holidays. Those who live with their employers are often considered ‘on call’ to undertake work for their employer 24 hours per day. The pay is often very low, with wage payments frequently delayed. Some domestic workers may not be paid at all or only receive ‘payment in kind’ such as food or accommodation.

Many domestic workers face verbal abuse such as insults and threats, alongside physical and even sexual abuse. Some domestic workers experience a lack of food and poor living conditions such as having to sleep on the floor in a utility room.

Domestic workers lack legal protection. In many countries, domestic workers are not considered ‘workers’ but rather as informal ‘help’ and are excluded from national labour legislation. Often they do not enjoy the same protections as other members of the workforce, such as minimum pay, social security, and maternity benefits. In countries where domestic workers are covered by national labour laws, enforcement is poor and these protections have not been translated into practice. Domestic workers are exploited behind closed doors in private households and fall outside the normal regulatory and inspection framework applicable to other places of work. It is also difficult for them to organise and join trade unions because of their place of work.

When is domestic work slavery?

Domestic work is a sector which is particularly vulnerable to forms of slavery such as forced labour, trafficking, and bonded labour, due to the unique and specific circumstances of their work inside a private household combined with a lack of legal protection.

For some domestic workers, the circumstances and conditions of their work amount to forced labour : where employers have forbidden them from leaving the home; withheld or not paid wages; used violence or threats of violence; withheld their passports or identity document; limited their ability to have contact with family; or deceived them about their rights in order to compel them to work.

Problems faced by migrant domestic workers

Migrant domestic workers are at a heightened risk of exploitation and many are trafficked for forced labour. They often fall victim to deceptive job offers while in their home country and are coerced to work in conditions upon arrival to which they did not agree. Some fall into bonded labour as a result of the transportation and recruitment costs incurred in taking up a job abroad.

In many countries their right to work is tied to a specific employer, meaning that they are less likely to leave a slavery-like situation since they could be deported and lose their livelihood if they leave that employer. Language barriers and their isolation in the community also make it much more difficult for them to seek help in cases of abuse.

Problems faced by child domestic workers

Child domestic workers are also extremely vulnerable to slavery and abuse. Due to their young age, isolation and separation from their family they are inherently easier to coerce and control and have a lesser ability than an adult to object to a given task or situation. Some are trafficked, while others are in bonded labour, forced to work to pay off a loan their parents have taken.

In most countries the minimum age for employment is 15 years old. Yet child domestic workers are often younger with some starting work as young as six years old. Whilst domestic work is conventionally regarded as beneficial for a girl's development, in reality many suffer from violence at the hands of their employers. Even if a child is not in slavery, they can be severely exploited. Child domestic workers are frequently not paid for their work. Alongside working long hours for little or no pay, many suffer physical and sometimes sexual abuse, are denied their right to go to school, are restricted from contact with their family and lack the opportunity to make friends. Their conditions of work are frequently hazardous involving the use of chemicals such as bleach, and hot and dangerous instruments such as irons, often without training or protective clothing.

What is Anti-Slavery International doing?

Our new campaign! HOME ALONE: End Domestic Slavery

Anti-Slavery International is campaigning for the International Labour Organization to adopt a new convention on domestic work which would protect the rights of domestic workers worldwide and ensure they are treated equally and fairly.

Read more about the campaign here


Anti-Slavery International's work to protect child domestic workers

Our project, Protecting child domestic workers from abuse and exploitation, is delivered with local partners in six countries: Peru, Costa Rica, Philippines, India, Togo and Tanzania. We are conducting research on the psychosocial impact of domestic work on children, assisting and supporting groups of child domestic workers through a programme of small grants, and undertaking advocacy work at local, regional, national and international levels to raise awareness about child domestic workers, strengthen actions that support them and influence law making processes.