Final Evaluation: Making Institutions Accountable towards Women Domestic Workers: Effective Implementation of Sexual Harassment at Workplace Act, 2013 (India) 

Author(s)/editor(s)

Ayushmita Samal & Meher Suri 

Location: Delhi and Gurugram, India 

Grantee: Martha Farrell Foundation 

Grant period: May 2021–August 2024 

Grant amount: $148,870  

The project “Making Institutions Accountable towards Women Domestic Workers: Effective Implementation of Sexual Harassment at Workplace Act, 2013”, with support from the UN Trust Fund to End Violence against Women, was implemented by Martha Farrell Foundation in Delhi and Gurugram in India from 2021 to 2024 to address issues such as denied paid leave and late payment of wages, verbal abuse, caste-based discrimination and forced labour.

Through holding training sessions for women domestic workers and service providers, and establishing local committees to support sexual harassment complaints, the project aimed to:

raise awareness among women domestic workers about their rights;
improve access to redress mechanisms; and
strengthen the capacity of institutional stakeholders to handle complaints more effectively.

The final evaluation concluded that the project achieved a considerable amount of its intended results, with partial achievements in institutional reform, and that continued investment was needed in the local committees to sustain the gains. 

Key findings: 

99% of surveyed women domestic workers recognized sexual harassment as a crime compared to 16% at the start of the project, and 88% were familiar with the role of local committees in addressing complaints. 
Women domestic workers emerged as pehelkars – people who spearhead collective efforts and inspire others to advocate for themselves. 
Unintended impacts of the project included the sensitization of informal workers other than women domestic workers, as well as male members of the community, on labour rights.

“We have rights… We should get paid leave. Our work should be safe. We should be allowed to use the bathroom.” - Focus group discussion participant