Desk : Despite repeated promises of labour law reforms and worker protection measures, domestic workers in Pakistan continue to face widespread exploitation, low wages, and lack of legal safeguards, according to a report highlighting their condition in the country.
Domestic work remains one of the most invisible yet essential forms of labour in Pakistan’s urban households. From cooking and cleaning to childcare and elderly care, millions of workers—mostly women and children—are engaged in this sector, often under informal and unregulated conditions.
Human rights observers and labour experts say that although various provincial governments have drafted or proposed laws for the protection of domestic workers, implementation remains weak or entirely absent. As a result, workers continue to be vulnerable to long working hours, verbal and physical abuse, and wages that fall below even minimum living standards.
A major concern highlighted in multiple studies is the absence of enforceable contracts and social security coverage for domestic workers. Many are employed without written agreements, leaving them dependent on employers’ goodwill and exposed to exploitation.
Children working as domestic helpers remain another serious issue. Despite legal restrictions on child labour in several provinces, enforcement gaps allow the practice to continue in both rural and urban areas.
Activists argue that domestic workers in Pakistan are still treated as an “invisible workforce,” with limited access to justice or complaint mechanisms. Labour rights groups have repeatedly called for the full inclusion of domestic workers under national labour laws, along with strict monitoring and enforcement mechanisms.
While governments have announced labour reforms from time to time, critics say that the absence of political will and institutional enforcement has left millions of domestic workers without meaningful protection.
Until laws move beyond paper and into practice, domestic workers in Pakistan are likely to remain trapped in cycles of exploitation and economic vulnerability.