The Pivotal Role of a Homemaker
In
an unprecedented and historic verdict by the Supreme Court of India, on
Tuesday, Jan 5, 2021 the judgment says, “There can be no exact calculation or
formula that can magically ascertain the true value provided by an individual
gratuitously for those that they are near and dear to. The attempt of the Court
in such matters should therefore be towards determining, in the best manner
possible, the truest approximation of the value added by a homemaker for the
purpose of granting monetary compensation.”
The
conception that house makers do not “work” or that they do not add economic
value to the household is a problematic idea that has persisted for many years
and must be overcome, Honourable Justice NV Ramana observed in a judgment delivered in
this case.
The honourable court was disposing an appeal arising out of Motor Accident Compensation Claim
filed by two toddler daughters and the elderly father of a man, in Delhi who
died along with his wife following a bike collision with a car. The deceased
wife was a home maker. The Motor Accidents Claim Tribunal (MACT) had ordered a
compensation of Rs. 40.71 lakhs, which was reduced to Rs. 22 lakhs by the Delhi
High Court. The claimants challenged the High court ruling before the Supreme
Court, which came up before a Bench of Justices NV Ramana, Abdul Nazeer and
Surya Kant. The bench enhanced the total compensation as 33.20 lakhs.
The judgment, as well as the opinion, is praiseworthy and significant enough to encapsulate the pivotal role of a homemaker in supporting a family's economy leading to an added value to a nation's but the reality is an illusion for millions of homemakers across the globe who are actually privy to their own economic value and all the productivity which attain by each and every task they are doing for their children and their families.
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How repugnant it seems! Not just India but in many other countries women, specially homemakers are considered of lesser or no economic value as they don’t earn and contribute (monetary) to the expenses required to run a house and feed a family. The status of women is still unchanged and least respected in many parts of the world. They take care of the house, cook, clean, raise the children, and do other activities in plethora which nurture a family. A homemaker is indeed a pillar of strength and leaves no stone unturned in making the family members grow and achieve they deserve and aspire for but her place is never incorporated in the economic analysis; neither by the family nor by the country saying she doesn't add to the monetary gains but what about saving all the expenses which would be made to take care of a family in her absence. Is GDP a true indicator of welfare of a nation? Her services help the nation achieve better health, nutrition, Education and human capital formation; surprisingly she does all these important jobs gratis. Women, in villages, contribute to the cottage industry, cattle rearing, farming and other repair works without being counted.
Interesting Read: Women-Warriors-Demand-Gender-Neutrality
Gandhiji
once said, “Woman is the noblest of God’s creation, supreme in her own sphere
of activity.” How women can talk of supremacy when most of the times they struggle
to achieve the status of equality both at home and at workplace. In 2017, a
study showed the overall gender pay gap in India
was 20%. While men with 0-2 years of experience earned 7.8 % higher median
wages than women, in the experience group of 6-10 years, the pay gap was 15.3
%. The pay gap becomes wider at senior-level positions which really put a
question mark on the ethos of our culture and society.
Despite
the struggle and the grind that a homemaker goes through, she continues to be
categorized as a non-economic entity she is never referred as an asset in a
nation’s economy. Granted that a housewife’s activities are diverse as well as multi-tasking,
and are not easy to calculate in monetary terms, but to underestimate her worth
and unconditional support is not fair. She holds equal status in the economy indirectly if not directly. Hitting out the chauvinistic approach,
the Supreme Court of India had said, “Such categorization of about 36 crore
women in India by the authorities betrays a totally insensitive and callous
approach towards the dignity of labour and …also indicative of gender bias.”
With
such judgments and quotes, we hope that someday economists will be able to
set an economic value to household services of women to arrive at a correct
estimate of the country’s GDP, and we are anticipating the scenario when a
housewife will be given her due worth and win this highly debatable economic
analysis to be in their favour.
