Domestic workers demand end to abuse on International Domestic Workers’ Day

Apart from commemorating the 1976 Soweto student uprising on Youth Day on Monday, domestic workers in South Africa were also marking International Domestic Workers’ Day with a conference in Cape Town and Johannesburg. They called for the government and employers to give their work adequate protection, particularly to be registered with the Unemployed Insurance Fund (UIF) and the Compensation for Occupational Injuries and Diseases Act (Coida).

Around the world, the International Trade Union Congress (ITUC) led a call on governments to urgently ratify and effectively implement the International Labour Organisation’s Convention 189 on Decent Work for Domestic Workers.

The ILO Convention 189 is a commitment to ensuring domestic workers have the same rights and protections as other workers. The convention, adopted on June 16 2011, is a key step in recognising and improving the working conditions of domestic workers globally. South Africa ratified the convention in July 2013 but most of the domestic workers attending the conference said that they are not registered for UIF or Coida.

Led by the South African Domestic Service and Allied Workers Union (Sadsawu), the workers spoke about the culture of fear that is common in the sector and how they continue to work under bad working conditions without benefits.

Susan Kali who has worked as a domestic worker for 42 years said that some employers promise domestic workers that they will pay the UIF or compensate them for injuries themselves instead of registering them. “When we speak to those who are not union members about the need for their employers to register them for UIF or Coida, they tell us that their employer has promised to pay them out of their own pocket which is wrong and that is why most employees do not worry about being registered for UIF,” she said. She is not registered for Coida herself, but has ensured that she is registered for UIF.

Domestic workers work in isolation and in private homes, making them vulnerable to abuse and disregard for labour laws.

Nomahlubi Masoka shared a story of how she is only registered for UIF at one workplace and not another. “I started working for my current employer in 2010 and I am not registered at her house and I started to work at her workplace two years ago where I’m registered. I’m worried about what would happen to me if I were to lose my job at her house,” she said.

Nyarai Magwiro, who originally comes from Zimbabwe and has been a domestic worker for 10 years, said that she is not registered for UIF or Coida as she does not have a work permit. “The money that I earn is enough to buy food and pay rent. I don’t have money to pay an agent who will apply for a work permit for me. I have seen how other migrant domestic workers have been unfairly dismissed and because they do not have papers they are scared to challenge it,” said Magwiro.

Abuse, discrimination and sexual harassment

“The worst form of abuse that I have and continue to encounter is the silent treatment that I get from my employer. I have been with my employer for 20 years and I have practically raised her children but she treats me badly. You would want to raise certain issues but her face and attitude makes it difficult to do so. I live with my daughter in the domestic quarters and my daughter is in matric now. I have sensed that they do not expect her to come back and live with me next year. They were not accepting of her moving in to stay with me when she was in grade 4,” said Merriam Greeff.

Greeff said that her employer blames them for any mishap and if anything breaks it is immediately seen as their fault. Kali complains about the same scapegoating: “If you break anything, you are liable for it. If a cup or plate slips out of your hand, you will be shouted at and called clumsy. Things like washing machine or iron are not supposed to break.”

“They also do not feed us anymore. They always complain about the food you eat. You can’t cook oats for long because you are wasting electricity. It has been six years since I stopped eating lunch at work. I wait until I get home to eat,” Kali said.

Kali told Elitsha that she was twice a victim of sexual harassment at work. “The husband asked me to massage his private parts and when I refused and told him that I was going to tell his wife, it was then that I lost my job. At another job, the husband would compliment and touch my body. I did not feel safe as I felt that he could rape me and I resigned,” said Kali.

Sadsawu is an affiliate of the International Domestic Workers Federation which calls for decent working conditions in the sector.

Domestic workers are protected

In a landmark ruling by the Pretoria High Court in 2019, the court ruled that the exclusion of domestic workers from Coida is unconstitutional. Over a million domestic workers around the country are, therefore, eligible for compensation for occupational injuries and diseases but few employers have registered their workers, according to Sadsawu.

Since April 2023, legislation provides that domestic workers and their employers have to make contributions to the UIF for the benefit of the employee in case of an injury or illness that makes them unable to work.