All Things Policy Homes as Workplaces: How Karnataka’s New Bill Can Change Our Lives
Nov 28, 2025
In this discussion, guests Kartik Singh, a software professional turned public policy student, and Anoop Gannerkote, a renewable energy expert and public policy student, delve into Karnataka's Domestic Workers Social Security and Welfare Bill. They explore how the bill aims to protect domestic workers but also question its feasibility and implications. Key topics include the challenges of mandatory registration, potential privacy issues with home inspections, and the difficulty of standardizing wages. The conversation emphasizes the need for gradual reform and improved grievance mechanisms over heavy-handed regulation.
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State Motivations For Regulating Domestic Work
- Karnataka aims to formalize domestic work recognizing large-scale informality and power asymmetries between employers and workers.
- The state likely wants to register workers to channel welfare but risks misjudging sector dynamics.
Mandatory Registration And New Institutions
- The bill makes registration mandatory within 30 days and creates a welfare board and grievance mechanism to manage delivery.
- These institutional steps aim to identify workers and deliver benefits but add administrative layers.
Inspectors Entering Private Homes
- The bill empowers inspectors to enter homes and assess working conditions at their discretion.
- Applying factory-style inspection to private households raises privacy and misuse concerns.