Domestic workers to be registered to provide benefits of welfare schemes: Punjab Minister Sidhu
All domestic workers in Punjab will be registered with the State Social Security Board and they will be extended benefits under various social security and welfare schemes being run by the state government.
The decision was taken in the maiden meeting of the State Social Security Board for unorganized workers held in Chandigarh on Wednesday under the chairmanship of Punjab Labour Minister Balbir Singh Sidhu.
The minister said till date there was no provision for registration of domestic workers, which left them out of the ambit of welfare schemes of the state government.
They are also subjected to exploitation and maltreatment at the hands of their employers, he said after the meeting.
After registration of the domestic workers with the State Social Security Board, they will be provided a unique identity card which will be linked to their Aadhaar number, Balbir Singh Sidhu was quoted as saying in an official release.
Principal Secretary of the Labour Department Sanjay Kumar said any domestic worker who has completed 14 years of age would be eligible for registration and they have to furnish a self-declaration of being a domestic worker.
He said the complete details of the registration process will be uploaded on the labour department's website and it would be widely publicised. PTI
