A large number of country's domestic workers are being deprived of their rights like minimum wage, working hour, overtime payments in absence of any policy or act.
For not having such legal supports, most domestic helps have to work for more than 14 hours a day and in some cases, it goes beyond that, making them vulnerable to lead inhuman life, workers and rights groups said.
After the country's independence, different laws and policies were formulated for workers, but 5.0 million full-time and part-time domestic helps are still excluded from all types of such legal supports, they added.
Even Bangladesh is yet to ratify the ILO domestic workers convention 189 to protect their interests.
"We demanded that the government bring the domestic workers under Bangladesh Labour (Amendment) Act, 2013. But the government didn't include them in this law," said Abul Hossain, adviser of National Domestic Women Workers Union (NDWWU).
He said it was very necessary to include the domestic helps in labour act to ensure their rights.
According to an International Labour Organisation (ILO) study conducted in 2013, only 10 per cent of domestic workers in the world are covered by national labour laws while 30 per cent including those of Bangladeshi domestic workers are completely excluded from national labour laws.
Between 2011 and 2014, some 143 domestic workers were killed and 104 wounded by their employers, according to a report by Domestic Workers Rights Network (DWRN).
The report also showed that during the period between 2001 and 2010, some 398 domestic workers were tortured to death while 299 were wounded and 100 other harassed sexually.
But the labour leaders said the actual number of victims will be much higher as a small number of victims come into focus of newspapers and studies.
Selina (15), a full-time domestic help, said she doesn't get salary regularly, even though there is a verbal agreement with her employer on paying wage every month.
Selina also said she is not happy at all with her work as she is forced to take heavy workload. "I cannot sleep soundly as I have to work till midnight".
"I usually start work early in the morning with taking breakfast and my work ends at 1.00 am with washing dishes," said Selina who hails from Gaibandha district.
Sometimes her employer uses abusive words without any vital reason, she added.
Another domestic worker Mina (14) said her employer tortures her physically for making minor mistakes.
"My male employer also harasses me sexually many times. But I cannot raise the matter with his wife in fear of more tortures," she added.
"Now I want to leave the job. But where I will go as a good number of employers are committing the same crime," Mina said, adding that she has no alternative but to work as a house worker.
NDWWU adviser Abul Hossain said they have long been demanding for framing a policy for domestic workers.
The government drafted a 'Domestic Worker Protection and Welfare Policy in 2010, but some major provisions like wage structure were excluded in 2014.
He hoped that the government would include key provisions again and announce the policy as early as possible.
"We hoped that the policy will be announced on May Day. At least we will be happy if it gets approval before June 16, International Domestic Workers Day," the labour leader said.
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