Mumbai cares

8216;8216;There was a long-pending demand from various groups and political parties on this issue. The government wants to give some protection to this unorganised and poor class,8217;8217; Chief Minister Sushilkumar Shinde said.

The board will be headed by an assistant labour officer and will comprise representatives of the domestic workers, employers, NGOs and the government. The government is expected to issue an ordinance soon to give the board legal status. However, the decision will not be strictly enforced with immediate effect.

In the initial stages, the board will be operational in municipal areas including Mumbai. In the second stage, it will be applied to rest of urban Maharashtra. 8216;8216;We want to protect domestic workers. But the government wants to move slowly to avoid inconvenience,8217;8217; Shinde added.

Significantly, the government had issued a code for employing domestic workers earlier. However, it did not yield the desired results since it was recommendatory in nature.