Deepening Problems of Domestic Workers During the COVID-19 Outbreak: The Case of Istanbul
Ceyhun GülerThe COVID-19 outbreak has caused social and economic problems at a global level. Unemployment, reduced participation in the workforce, loss of income, lack of social protection, and infection are among employment-related problems, impacting insecure groups, mostly working informally adversely. Domestic workers included in these groups were particularly vulnerable during the pandemic due to informality and insecurity. This study aims to understand the issues faced by 35 women domestic workers in Istanbul throughout the pandemic by conducting in-depth interviews using semi-structured questions via online platforms or phone calls. The problems and rights violations experienced by domestic workers were evaluated descriptively through interview data within the study’s scope. Research findings show that domestic workers are subjected to numerous rights violations related to the right to work and other fundamental human rights. Among the issues raised in interviews, loss of work and income, lack of social protection, heavy workload, and inability to access paid leave emerged.
COVID-19 Salgını Döneminde Ev İşçilerinin Derinleşen Sorunları: İstanbul Örneği
Ceyhun GülerCovid-19 salgını küresel düzeyde toplumsal ve ekonomik anlamda çok sayıda sorunun ortaya çıkmasına neden olmuştur. İşsizlik, iş gücüne katılımın azalması, gelir kaybı, sosyal korumadan yoksunluk ve virüs bulaşma riski ise çalışma yaşamı içerisinde salgınla bağlantılı ortaya çıkan sorunlar arasında yer almıştır. Çoğunlukla kayıt dışı çalışan güvencesiz gruplar bahsi geçen sorunlardan çok daha yoğun etkilenmişlerdir. Ev işçileri de bu güvencesiz gruplar arasında bulunmaktadır. Kayıt dışılık ve güvencesizlik ev işçilerini salgın döneminde çok daha kırılgan ve savunmasız hale getirmiştir. Bu çalışmada ev işçilerinin salgın döneminde yaşadıkları sorunları, gerçekleştirilen derinlemesine görüşmeler aracılığıyla işçilerin deneyimleri üzerinden anlaşılması amaçlanmıştır. Bahsedilen amaç doğrultusunda İstanbul’da yaşayan 35 kadın ev işçisi ile yarı yapılandırılmış sorular aracılığıyla online platformlar veya telefon görüşmeleri üzerinden derinlemesine görüşmeler gerçekleştirilmiştir. Araştırma kapsamında kendileriyle görüşme gerçekleştirilen ev işçilerinin Covid-19 salgını döneminde yaşadıkları sorunlar ve maruz kaldıkları hak ihlalleri mülakat verileri üzerinden betimsel bir şekilde analiz edilmeye çalışılmıştır. Araştırma bulguları ev işçilerinin, çalışma hakkı ve diğer temel insan hakları bağlamında çok sayıda hak ihlaline maruz kaldıklarını göstermiştir. İş ve gelir kaybı, sosyal korumadan yoksunluk, iş yükünün ağırlaşması, ücretli izin hakkına erişememe, mesai saatlerinin uzaması vb. ev işçilerinin dikkat çektikleri sorunlardan olmuştur.
The COVID-19 outbreak revealed significant economic and social problems around the world, influencing a negative effect on employment. Loss of income, mass unemployment, inability to access social security systems, poverty, decreased labor force participation, inequality in working relations, and the risk of infection are some of the problems mentioned affecting vulnerable and insecure groups that include domestic workers. The prevalence of informal work in domestic work deepened the problems experienced during the pandemic. This study focuses on the problems experienced by domestic workers in this period.
Gender-based inequality in and social perception on household labor causes domestic work to be perceived as unrequited and invisible. This situation negatively impacts the working standards of domestic workers. Therefore, domestic work emerges as a sector with high insecurity. Domestic workers, the majority of whom are women, often work without job security, social security, and legal protection. The problems of domestic workers do not arise only at the point of working relations, in parallel with the domestic work structure. Concurrently, gender inequality–related problems arise intersectionally. Gender inequality, lack of legal protection, inability to access social security, poor working conditions, lack of job security, violence (more notably against women), and harassment are frequently encountered by domestic workers in their families, households, and working lives. Informal employment and the absence of a standard employment contract make these problems increasingly acute. In parallel, the problems experienced by domestic workers have been observed to deepen amid the pandemic.
According to International Labour Organization (ILO) reports, it was pointed out that approximately three-quarters of domestic workers lost jobs and income during the COVİD-19 outbreak. Furthermore, the impact of informal employment on job security was one of the issues that the ILO highlighted at this time, stating that informal workers made up the bulk of domestic workers who lost their jobs and income. Workloads of domestic workers have increased, their working conditions have deteriorated, and their risk of infection has increased as a result of continuing to work during the pandemic. This study used an in-depth interview technique, one of the qualitative research methods, to identify and explain both the problems and the experiences (and how domestic workers make sense of these experiences) faced by them during the COVİD-19 outbreak.
Domestic workers living in Istanbul were interviewed within the scope of the research. The fact that the majority of registered domestic workers live in Istanbul, helped narrow down the sample size. In this direction, 35 domestic workers participated in in-depth interviews using semi-structured questions. Due to the current risks and restrictions, all interviews were conducted online or via phone calls. Twenty-two of the participating domestic workers are day workers, and 13 are live-in workers. Four of the day workers were observed to undertake care work, and six of the live-in workers are migrants. Domestic workers’ problems during the pandemic were categorized under certain headings in line with the findings obtained from the interviews, proceeded by two different focuses, the problems faced by unemployed domestic workers and those faced by employed domestic workers. Loss of work and income, lack of support during the pandemic, not being able to benefit from the right to social security, worsened working conditions, and the risk of infection have all been highlighted as major problems throughout the interviews. In conclusion, the problems encountered were assessed based on violations of the right to work. The study also suggested solutions to resolve the specified problems.
