ABSTRACT

This article examines the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on the work conditions of domestic workers in Nigeria. We use four indicators – earnings, access to social protection, working conditions and labour protections to provide a nuanced assessment on the impact of the pandemic on domestic workers. Domestic work is an important aspect of productive labour and an indispensable factor that contributes to the well-being of households and the economy. Indeed, the enormous contribution of this sector to societies has been further exposed by the COVID-19 pandemic. However, while domestic workers are lauded as essential workers, their work remains extremely vulnerable to exploitation and human rights violations, and the pandemic has aggravated this situation. In the results, we find that while many domestic workers did not lose their jobs, their earning power dropped because of low wages in the sector. Furthermore, only 6% of survey respondents reported having access to the government’s social protection measures. The findings of this study emphasises the need for the development of a regulatory model which considers the realities of the domestic work sector. Data used in this article draws from questionnaires administered on 220 domestic workers across four geo-political zones of Nigeria.

摘要

本文探讨了 COVID-19 大流行对尼日利亚家庭工人工作条件的影响。我们使用收入、获得社会保障、工作条件和劳动保护这四个指标，对疫情对家政工人的影响进行细致入微的评估。家政工作是生产性劳动的一个重要方面，也是促进家庭福祉和经济不可或缺的因素。事实上，COVID-19 大流行进一步暴露了该部门对社会的巨大贡献。然而，尽管家政工人被誉为必不可少的工人，但他们的工作仍然极易受到剥削和侵犯人权，而新冠疫情则加剧了这种情况。在结果中我们发现，虽然许多家庭佣工没有失业，由于该行业工资低，他们的赚钱能力下降。此外，只有 6% 的受访者表示能够享受政府的社会保护措施。本研究的结果强调需要制定考虑到家政工作部门现实的监管模式。本文使用的数据来自对尼日利亚四个地缘政治区 220 名家政工人进行的调查问卷。