Twentyfive-year-old Aruna, a new mother and career woman was posed with a tricky situation. Her maternity leave was almost running out and with a small child, she desperately needed help at home with someone to take care of her baby while she was at work. As the child was very small, she needed someone with experience to handle a baby.
Thirty-year-old Manju had just changed cities in pursuit of a new career. While things were settling down at the job front, her personal life was getting affected, as she was away from her three-year-old daughter whom she had left behind. She needed her daughter with her but also wanted a helping hand to take care of her while she was going to be away at work.
Sound like common issues? Whether it is new mothers or busy working women, an increasingly large number of families are opting for domestic help to assist in household chores. With both the husband and wife working, life today is very hectic with little or no time. Recognising this opportunity, there has been a mushrooming of agencies offering professional domestic services. This has also meant a large degree of professionalism in an erstwhile unorganised sector. Says Mohammed Sameer of Taj Services, “we do a complete background check of all the candidates who approach us for work. We also verify their addresses and assess them completely before sending them to our clients.” Incidentally this trend has meant that a lot of women who are not sound financially have been able to use this to find employment. Agrees Nixon of Standard Personal Services, “Ten years into this line and we have been helping women exclusively to find jobs at homes.”
With cities becoming increasingly cosmopolitan, the requirements of clients are also changing. Says Sameer, “ I get a lot of enquiries were the requirement is to have someone who can speak Hindi. Of course locally most women do speak almost all the South Indian languages.”
Advantage women
In fact a large proportion of people who are getting employment through these agencies happen to be women. A big advantage here is the salary they get to take. While typically outside one gets paid in the band of Rs 1,000 to Rs. 1,500 at the agencies, the minimum salary starts at Rs 3,500. Says Jayalakshmi who works as a nanny taking care of twins, “my employers are very good and ensure that I am paid well and also given breakfast and lunch. In fact I am free to cook and eat what I wish and I only need to take care of the kids.” For her the job means she has been able help out her family at home since the last one year with her earnings as well as take care of the children. With couples working this service is being seen as a panacea for all issues.
Do-it-all person
In fact domestic service is not just about baby care services. You can also get a cook, maid or patient care services from these organisations. In fact Standard Personal Services also offers a full time nurse for patient care at home. “This is quite a common requirement and the candidate’s salary ranges from Rs 6,000 to Rs 7,000 per month,” explains Nixon. No money is collected from the candidates who come to the agencies looking for a job. Most of the agencies offer two kinds of timings, a regular shift (normally comprising 8 hours of work) or a 24 hours stay back (work for about 11 hours). In case of the latter the help stays with the client who is obligated to look after accommodation and food for the help. “This has proved very helpful for women who do not have a family backing, like widows. In fact several poor women have been gainfully employed through our services,” adds Sameer. Another important aspect highlighted by PR Professional Cauvery Nanaiah is that it is vital to maintain an equation of trust.
Trust matters
“In today’s days it is rather easy to find employment in other avenues. However, it is important that you trust your domestic help,” she says. In fact she attributes the help she has at home, to have helped her professional career. It is a good idea to look at domestic help if you are not too keen on leaving your child in a crèche. Also many like Nanaiah do not really want to look at a professional agency but rather fall back on their native place to get domestic assistance. “Most of the women who approach us for work have several problems including that they are not well taken care of by their husbands. The job thus helps in providing a means for them to earn and also help their families,” explains Nixon.
However it is not always hunky dory. When you are taking help at home, take care of the age of the help as there are age limits set for work. Working professional Rekha shares a bad experience. “In spite of my help being over 15 years, I had been caught in a situation where I had to do several rounds of the Children Commission to prove it,” she explains. It is important that you check on the track record of the agency to establish its credentials. It is a good idea to check with other clients as well.
(Some names have been changed)
