CONTRIBUTION OF HOMEMAKER/HOUSEWIFE IN THE NATION
I really feel proud to include this topic in my list and I would love to dedicate this ofcourse to my mom who take care all of us from morning to night & also to one other courageous lady who actually sacrifice her wonderfull career just to give happiness and care to her husband & his family, one of my sister-in-law.
Women carry a disproportionately higher burden of unpaid work, namely domestic services as well as care of children, the old and the disabled or patient for their respective households.
All of these works contribute to national level but invisible in the national database and national policies, imagine a day when you awaking and that house maker is suffering from any problem which stopped her from all her daily work then you come to know the real value of that macho lady.
Actually you all just live in this comfort zone and the bold lady even in her troublesome condition provides all the services thats why you did not recognise the importance of her/his existence, its like when Sun do not rises but still gives you light by scattering during dawn & twilight, think if not a tiny light comes to you on any morning then You will realise the real blackout.
In my opinion homemaker either 'he' or 'she' is like Sun of the home, all the activities started on their awakening. Is it or not! depends on one's own opinion but for me its the good way to give them as much respect, care & support as I can, so I consider them as the SUN OF MY FAMILY, for me its both of my parents as they awaken before the sunrise & shine my home earlier than sun.
Its really good that now this is taken in consideration on Judicial level, as recently Supreme Court said that the value of a woman's work at home must be placed with that of her office-going husband.
A 24*365 job without remuneration, promotions and retirement benifits can be taken by a daring one.It restrict opportunities for women in the economy and in life. Women do this job not necessarily becouse they like it but it is imposed on them by patriarchal norms.
This unequal division of unpaid work between women and men is unfair and unjust and it deprives women of equal opportunities as men.
2021, year when a political party of Tamil Nadu has promised salaries to housewives as a part of its electoral campaign.
Data from 2019 gathered by the National Sample Survey Organisation revealed that only about a quarter of men and boys above six years engaged in unpaid household chores, compared to over four-fifths of women.Every day, an average Indian male spends 1.5 hours per dayin unpaid domestic work, compared to about five hours by a female.A large number of women live with domestic violence and cruelty because they are economically dependent on others, mainly their husbands.
A report by the International Labour Organisation (ILO)in 2018 shows that, globally, women perform 76.2% of total hours of unpaid care work, more than three times as much as men. In Asia and the Pacific, this figure rises to 80%.
Don't you think that this priceless silent contribution of homemaker in National Economy as invisible vector should be taken in consideration on National level for reward either in cash or cashless. I think a proper survey for this should be conducted & then according to that data GoI can consider them in their polices.
The origin of demand for 'Wages for Housework' associated with the 2nd Wave of the women's movement in North America & Europe. Alongside other demand of social & political equality made visible by women's right campaigners.
They challenged the assumption that a 'natural' affinity for housework was rooted in the essential nature of women who were performing a 'Labour of Love'. For leading women's rights activists of the 1960s and 1970s, it was important to bust the myth that the women's work at home is a personal service with no link with capitalist production.In a concrete sense, this meant linking the exploitation of the work in the factory to women's work at home.
A feminist scholar, Silvia Federici, in 1975, in "Wages against housework" compare the unpaid work & bargain of earners to the housework.
If we talk about India, in 2010 an application by the National Housewives Association, seeking recognition as a trade union was rejected by the deputy registrar of trade unions on the ground that housework is not a trade or an industry.
In 2012, the then minister for Women and Child development announced that the government was considering mandating a salary for housework to wives, from husbands. The purpose was to empower women financially and help them live with dignity.The proposal never materialised and with the change in the government in 2014,but now this is again taken in consideration on high level even the inclusion of it in electoral manifesto is really a bold decision by any political party.
There may be some who argued in favour of this but I guess such a country like India there will be less percentage of favouring person but definitely the young educated generation will mostly support this concept.
In reality there may be some difficulty as the recognition will be tough of such a huge population, but if NRC can be done then this survey will also be conducted successfully in future of this New Emerging Digital India.
With the help of these initiations atleast India will take this Recognition as the first step to Equality as the inequality is more here in our country, More Accurate National Income Accounting.
It will make Woman Autonomous and Control Domestic Violence, Redefines the Role of Women,Welfare of a large Segment of Population.
According to the Census in 2011, people engaged in household duties have been treated as non-workers, even when 159.9 million women stated that “household work” was their main occupation.
The immense burden of work therefore prevents women from pursuing further education, employment opportunities, raising their skill-level and tending to their own well-being.poor women are more likely to suffer from ‘time poverty’.
There is some consequences also; it will raise the burden on Government expenditure if GoI decide to pay them directly on their own risk, if the payment will be done by earner then it will Strengthen the Position of Men by buying domestic labour from wife which may poses a serious risk, it will also Increased the responsibility asking men to pay for wives’ domestic work could further enhance their sense of entitlement. It may also put the additional onus on women to perform. Acceptance and application, despite a legal provision, equal inheritance rights continue to be elusive for a majority of women then how can it be recognised that the policies of GoI is working, as corruption is on all level.
My suggestion is that;
GoI should take proper & regular survey of it & then either give them financial help in their accounts monthly or quarterly depends on budget,they can also share this burden with the earner of house as a 'Homemaker Tax' and then 50:40:10 may be contribution by Center, State & Earning Men/Women of the family.
There should be a database & make it mandatory for all homemaker to have an HM-ID like Adhar Card which will use by them for free public transport, health facilities, concession in different field like shopping for product of their own use, medicines etc.
At the end I will request everyone to contribute HomeMakers in your own ways, " Take care of her/him who cares for everyone, respect them as service provided by them is priceless, support them in all field, provide them comfort as much as you can, fight for them, consider them as the first person of your home as your earning does not fill your stomach alone, Homemaker & Moneymaker both have their own importance in a family, I will say that Homemaker is slightly higher as she not only cook food, she performed many task even it may be call as your manager emotionally, physically sometimes manage your salary also & make the budget of your family.
🙏 .......................TA
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