I came across the above headlines in the Times of India a few days back. On reading further, I came to know that a 35-year-old woman and her male friend residing in Vasant Kunj have been arrested for allegedly thrashing their domestic help. The servant was absent for two days as he was unwell due to the intense heat wave. When he went to his employer’s residence to collect his monthly salary he was beaten up for being absent from work.
This case is not a random one in Delhi. We all must have come across various instances where the maid servants and domestic help, security guards, car cleaners and others are mistreated in some way or the other.
While there is no need to compromise on the work quality; we must treat our domestic help respectfully, address them like a family member, take care of their basic needs, if required give them the food that you eat; be gentle to them – as they leave their family and children behind for about 10-12 hours every day to serve us.
Some employers don’t bother that their house helpers are also human beings who need to be treated with equal dignity, nobility, and pride. When the self-respect of the house help is constantly eroded, they are unable to perform well, lose their motivation and start resenting their superiors.
Let us treat with kindness, empathy and compassion- our house help, car drivers, car cleaners, service providers such as the cable/wifi technicians, couriers, delivery boys, security guards ,odd job persons such as painters, plumbers, carpenters ,electricians, the local press wala, newspaper hawker, and others-and make a qualitative difference in the lives of these persons..
