The central monitoring cell, formed to ensure the security of domestic workers, will conduct drives in houses if any allegation is found regarding torture on them, said State Minister for Labour and Employment Mujibul Haque on Thursday.
The junior minister came up with the announcement while talking to reporters after a meeting with members of the cell at the Secretariat. One who employs domestic helps must abide by the rules and regulations of the Domestic Workers Protection and Welfare Policy, 2015, Mujibul Haque said.
According to the policy, a formal deal has to be signed between the employer and the domestic worker which will ensure minimum wage, working hours, accommodation, casual and maternity leave, contract of employment, entertainment, healthcare support and compensation for accidents for the workers, he said.
Mujibul Haque also said under-12 children cannot be employed as domestic workers. If any allegation is found about engaging under-age children as domestic workers, the monitoring cell will carry out a drive and take action against the employer concerned, he added. Mentioning that there are at least 17 lakh child labourers in the country at present according to the information of Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS), the junior minister said his ministry has been working to stop engaging children in risky jobs by 2021.
The central monitoring cell was formed on July 13, 2016, aiming to implement the Domestic Workers Protection and Welfare Policy 2015, he said. The 22-member cell was formed with Mujibul Haque as its chairman, secretary of the Labour and Employment Ministry as its vice-chairman. Its rest 20 members are owners, workers and civil society members.
