Karnataka HC Alludes To Recognise Stay-At-Home Mum's Role As Full-Time Job

Society assumes that women belong to the domestic sphere. Raising a child, feeding a family and cleaning the mess are duties that women are supposed to do their entire lives. But when it comes to giving credit, women and their labour become invisible. Rather, men take the credit for allowing a woman the 'comfortable' life of staying at home. Ask any woman who is a stay-at-home wife or mother, if they really find it comfortable. What kind of comfort includes cleaning others' messes throughout the day and getting nothing in return? 

Recently, the Karnataka High Court observed that child care is a full-time job. It was dealing with a plea by a husband who denied paying maintenance to his wife because she sits idle at home even though she is capable of employment.

Karnataka HC says child care is a full-time job

Justice M. Nagaprasanna who was presiding over the case recognised the exhaustive duty of a mother while rearing a child and called it a full-time commitment. He also highlighted the sacrifices the mother made by giving up her job to take care of the children. The court refused to accept the idea that her role is limited to sustaining their existence. 

Hence, the court increased the interim maintenance payable to a woman from Rs 18,000 to Rs 36,000.

The wife's lawyer presented arguments and evidence on how the husband's income is substantial and yet he is not able to provide for the needs of the children. On the other hand, the husband's counsel contended that the husband's job was unstable and that the woman was capable of earning her own money. 

However the court supported the wife's decision to prioritise childcare and emphasised that the maintenance should be high enough to provide her with the same lifestyle as she had when she was with her husband. The court also said that the husband had a secured position at the bank where he was working hence rejecting his claim of job instability and inability to pay high maintenance.

SC on the value of homemakers

This remarkable decision in favour of stay-at-home moms comes days after the Supreme Court said that the value of a homemaker is not less than a salaried person. The court termed the effort put in by homemakers as "invaluable" that cannot be measured only in monetary terms. 

According to a bench of justices, Suryan Kant and KV Viswanathan said that the work a homemaker does is of "high order" that is hard to quantify in monetary terms. “The role of a homemaker is as important as that of a family member whose income is tangible. If the activities performed by a homemaker are computed one by one, there cannot be any doubt that the contribution is of a high order and is invaluable. It is difficult to compute her contributions only in monetary terms." 

But isn't it disheartening that we need a court order to understand that homemakers are valuable too? Why can't society accept that no family would function if no women were willing to exert themselves at home? Why must it take a woman's labour at home for granted? 

A homemaker's job is more stressful than a salaried job. A homemaker doesn't get to have weekends off or take sick leave. They have to work 24/7 with a workload that only increases. And yet, they don't get a heartfelt gratitude let alone a paycheck. Housework is assumed to be easy and comfortable. And women who do it are shamed for not being independent enough. 

But, would society allow a woman to work peacefully in a private or government firm? No. It will constantly remind her of her responsibilities at home which she is purposely 'avoiding'. It will blame for for every tiny mistake the child makes because apparently raising a child into a moral person is a mother's responsibility. And fathers have no business with it. Then why the shaming? Why does society always get to win? 

Spend one day cleaning the kitchen sink while the children in the house scream for your attention every minute, you will know what it takes to stay at home.  

Views expressed by the author are their own