Socio-Economic Status of Women Domestic Workers in Madurai City

Abstract

Women workers In India constitute one third of the total workforce. Majority of these women are engaged in the un-organized sectors such as agriculture, construction, domestic services etc. The overwhelming majority of domestic workers are women and girls. This study is empirical in nature and provides information about the profile, nature, working and living conditions of women domestic workers. The female domestic workers surveyed are the part time and full time workers who serve one or more households in a day. Domestic servants usually live with the employing family, performing a multitude of household tasks (such as laundry, ironing, cooking, cleaning, and serving) in exchange for a modest wage plus room and board. Domestic workers are usually young, single women from working-class families whose terms of service last until marriage.Women of modern days certainly play a vital role in development of society. There are many women who are found working in private companies and in government offices. In the mechanical way of living both women and men have to work. They need domestic workers for doing household works. This article focuses on Socio- economic status of domestic workers in Madurai City. In Madurai, various classes of people like socialites (Upper class), middle class and poor class live in large number. Socio- economic status of women varies with various classes to which they belong. In Madurai city, domestic workers play vital role in various segment of the society. There are 10,000 domestic workers in Madurai city. The main objective of the study is to collect socio-economic data of women domestic workers in Madurai city with a view to studying the problems faced by them in their working, living and social conditions.