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New Delhi: SC agreed and suggested to states to take legislative measures to protect domestic helps from exploitation, but refused to issue a direction for the adoption of minimum wages, apprehending that it would make families wary of taking their services because of the fear of being dragged to court by workers’ unions, reports Dhananjay Mahapatra.The court took a dim view of the role of trade unions, saying that they had, in fact, hurt the interests of workers. “Just to get popularity such petitions are filed by so-called trade union leaders. Do you know how many industries in India were closed because of the activities of unions? They do not allow workers to work,” the bench said, and asked the petitioners to approach their respective states for their grievances.Appearing for several heads of domestic workers’ unions and associations, senior advocate Raju Ramachandran said, “Domestic helps seldom get a weekly off.”
