LHC bans employment under the age of 15 as domestic help
LAHORE: The Lahore High Court (LHC) ban on employment under the age of 15 as domestic help is a welcome move. Time and again, cases of torture and brutally — carried out against little children who work as domestic help by their so-called masters — have been reported. One can recall the Tayyaba case that awoke the entire nation to notice this age-old practice of employing little children as ‘servants’. In the wake of such reports putting a ban on underage domestic help employment will not only spare these children from being ill-treated but will also encourage their parents to enroll them in schools.
Although a case can be made that even the age of 15 is a developing age for a child and perhaps the LHC should have limited the age to 18, this bill for now can set thousands of kids out of their misery. The LHC should also ensure that those who are, in fact, employed at the age of 15 and above should not have their rights compromised at the hands of the rich who employ them as domestic help.
Mansha Seher
Published in The Express Tribune, December 21st, 2018.
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