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A committee set up on Supreme Court directions says domestic workers do not need a separate law
The panel argues existing labour codes already cover domestic workers
Rights groups dispute the finding, saying most domestic workers remain excluded from legal and social protections
A committee set up on the directions of the Supreme Court of India has concluded that domestic workers do not require a separate law, arguing that they are already covered under existing labour legislation.
The finding comes amid continuing concern over the working conditions of millions of domestic workers across India, many of whom remain outside formal systems of social security and legal protection.
Usha Devi lives in a single rented room in Mewala Maharajpur village in Faridabad with her two children, mother-in-law, brother-in-law and sister-in-law. The room, which has a small kitchen on one side and a toilet on the other, is dark and damp.
Each morning, she leaves home at 8 am and returns around 9 pm after cleaning four households. She works for nearly 12 hours a day and earns about Rs 10,000 a month, of which Rs 4,000 goes towards rent. The rest is spent on household expenses and her children’s education.
Usha has followed this routine for almost a decade. She has no weekly day off, no social security and no paid leave. If she misses work for any reason, her wages are cut. She no longer receives subsidised food rations because she lacks documents proving residency in Faridabad. Illiterate and unaware of government welfare schemes, she says none have reached her.
Her experience mirrors that of millions of domestic workers across the country.
Concerned about such conditions, the Supreme Court, in an order dated 29 January 2025, directed the Union Ministry of Labour and Employment, in coordination with the ministries of Social Justice and Empowerment, Women and Child Development, and Law and Justice, to set up an expert committee.
The court asked the panel to examine whether a dedicated legal framework was needed for the welfare, protection and regulation of domestic workers’ rights. It left the composition of the committee to the government and gave it six months to submit its report.
In its report, prepared in July 2025, the committee concluded that a separate law for domestic workers was not needed.
It argued that domestic workers are already covered under India’s four labour codes:
the Code on Wages, 2019
the Code on Industrial Relations, 2020
the Code on Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions, 2020
the Code on Social Security, 2020
On this basis, the committee said there was no need for additional legislation.
Labour rights groups and researchers have challenged the panel's conclusion.
Piyush Poddar, senior programme officer at the Martha Farrell Foundation, which works on domestic workers’ rights, said the committee acknowledged that domestic workers — most of them women — are marginalised due to low wages and weak legal protection, but failed to examine the depth of the problem.
“This creates the impression that domestic workers face the same issues as other workers and therefore do not need a separate law,” he said.
Research by the International Labour Organization, Women in Informal Employment: Globalizing and Organizing (WIEGO), and the Martha Farrell Foundation suggests otherwise, Poddar said, arguing that the nature of domestic work creates distinct vulnerabilities.
According to Poddar, the recently notified labour codes define work relationships around formal employer–employee arrangements and institutional workplaces — a framework that excludes most domestic workers.
While domestic workers are explicitly mentioned under the Social Security Code, they are effectively left out of the other three codes, he said. The committee’s report, he added, does not explain how coverage under all four codes would be implemented in practice.
Grassroots organisations working with domestic workers continue to argue that a standalone law is necessary to address the specific risks faced by those working in private homes.
A report by the Martha Farrell Foundation, Work Without Security: An Analysis of Women Domestic Workers’ Conditions, Struggles and Aspirations, found that the informal and unregulated nature of domestic work results in minimal state oversight.
Many domestic workers lack access to health insurance, maternity benefits, provident funds and pensions that are available to workers in the formal sector.
Migrant domestic workers are particularly disadvantaged, often unable to access welfare schemes due to missing documentation or lack of awareness of government programmes.
The absence of written contracts and irregular wage arrangements also leaves workers vulnerable to sudden loss of income and job insecurity. Welfare schemes specifically designed for domestic workers, the report found, are limited in scope, poorly implemented or inaccessible to migrants.