NEW DELHI: Alice Shyjen came to Delhi three years ago in search of a job. A widow, she had travelled all the way from Kerala, leaving behind her two children with a relative. She finally got a call from a home nurse recruitment agency and landed a job at a patient’s house in West Delhi. With the earnings from the new job, 48-year-old Shyjen hoped she could finally build a house back in her village in Idukki district.
Shyjen hardly knew that having a home would remain a dream. Even as the deadly Covid pandemic swept through the city, she continued the job. Then came the shocker; despite the risks she took, the agency didn’t pay her the agreed amount of Rs 55,000 per month.
The home nurse claims she got only a portion of the salary and an amount of Rs 5.40 lakh is still pending for her 15-month-long work. She laments that the agency keeps on delaying the matter and asks her to come back later. “Initially, they promised they would return my money as soon as things become normal but later they refused to give my compensation and told me that I could go to court if I wanted,” says Shyjen.
Going to court may not be of any help as the helpless woman has no written contract with her. Shyjen says recruitment agencies usually don’t sign any contract with the nurses and it is only a verbal contract between them. “When I contacted the patient’s family where I worked for the 15 months they said they had already paid the money to the agency,” Shyjen rues.
According to Joshy Mathew, president of United Nursing Association, several nurses have faced similar experience in the city. He says nurses are hired fast but have to wait for long to get their compensation. “Recruitment agencies don’t prefer formal written contracts for the nurses. The agencies exploit them and make them wait for the money which usually comes after a major chunk is deducted by agencies,” say Mathew.
There are around 8,000 home nurses working in Delhi, out of which around 3,000-4,000 are from Kerala.Mathew says nurses fear to complaint as they might end up losing their jobs. Adding to their miseries, nurses are ill-treated in many families, Mathew claims. “Many quit the job because the families do not treat them with respect,” adds Mathew.
He also alleges that most of the recruitment agencies operating in the national capital have no valid license. “Almost 95 per cent recruitment agencies do not have a licence or registration with the government and neither a proper office. They function through their phones,” he says