There are hundreds of thousands of people in the unorganised sector who have been making our lives easier to maintain our household activities and this lockdown has made many of us appreciate their work more in their absence.
Chennai with over 11,000 coronavirus cases is one of the worst-affected in Tamil Nadu and there are not many relaxations yet in the city because of the current situation.
46-year-old Eswari, a house help in Chennai, was out of work for a long time due to coronavirus crisis. She had been working in five households as domestic help. But now things have changed and she has resumed work but only one family is ready to let her into their house.
“The three men in my house have no work now because of the coronavirus pandemic. I am the only one earning, and in my case of the five houses that I used to work, only one house has allowed me to resume work. Our situation is so bad, I have applied for a loan from women’s welfare scheme but there is no update on that too,” Eswari, her eyes brimming with tears, said.
Latha, one of the employers of Eswari who has allowed her to resume work, said these are testing times and all of us have to support one another.
“Our domestic helps are also human beings, we were paying them even during the lockdown, and when she wanted to resume work, I allowed her. I told her all the precautions that she has to take before entering the house – she wears masks and sanitises her hands and legs before coming in. These are testing times and we need to take necessary precautions and rest is left to god,” Latha said.
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