Domestic workers do not need a separate law

Context: A committee constituted on the Supreme Court’s directions has concluded that domestic workers do not require a separate law, arguing they are already covered under existing labour codes.

About Domestic workers do not need a separate law:

What it is?

• It refers to the expert committee report (July 2025) submitted to the Union Ministry of Labour and Employment, formed following a Supreme Court order dated 29 January 2025, to examine whether India needs a dedicated legal framework for domestic workers’ welfare, protection and regulation.

Key recommendations / conclusions

• No separate legislation required: The committee held that domestic workers are already covered under India’s four labour codes.

• Coverage under labour codes: It cited the Code on Wages (2019), Industrial Relations Code (2020), OSH Code (2020) and Social Security Code (2020) as providing sufficient legal protection.

• Focus on implementation: The report implied that better enforcement of existing laws, rather than new legislation, should address workers’ vulnerabilities.

• Inter-ministerial coordination: It emphasised coordination among labour, women & child development, social justice and law ministries instead of a standalone law.

Significance:

• Policy stance shift: The report signals the government’s preference for legal consolidation over sector-specific laws.

• Implications for informal labour: Domestic work, largely informal and home-based, is being equated with other labour categories despite distinct vulnerabilities.

• Judicial–executive interface: The outcome highlights limits of committee-based responses to Supreme Court concerns on social justice.

• Gender dimension: Since most domestic workers are women, the decision has direct consequences for gender equity and labour rights.

Relevance for UPSC exam syllabus

• GS Paper II (Polity & Governance):

• Welfare of vulnerable sections and Role of Supreme Court in social justice Labour reforms and labour codes and Issues in implementation of government policies

• Welfare of vulnerable sections and Role of Supreme Court in social justice

• Labour reforms and labour codes and Issues in implementation of government policies

• GS Paper I (Society):

• Women workers in informal sector Migration, urban poverty and social exclusion

• Women workers in informal sector

• Migration, urban poverty and social exclusion

• GS Paper IV (Ethics):

• Justice, empathy and inclusion State responsibility towards unorganised labour

• Justice, empathy and inclusion

• State responsibility towards unorganised labour