Abstract:
This study discusses the legal analysis of social security rights of domestic workers
in the South African social security law. The notion social security is concerned with
the protection of individuals during the happening of certain event such as
unemployment, maternity, disability, old age, sickness, and death. For the purpose of
this study, social insurance schemes which arise from the employment relationship
will be explored. It is submitted that domestic workers like any other employees
should also be afforded social security protection as envisaged in the Constitution of
the Republic of South Africa, 1996 (the Constitution). Therefore, domestic workers
must also be provided social security rights arising out of their employment. Thus,
the research process will involve thorough analysis of statutes, case law, textbooks
and scholarly articles dealing with the social security law protection afforded to
domestic workers, in particular the social insurance component of social security.
For an exceptionally long time, domestic workers have been excluded from the
formal employment sector, which followed that they were automatically excluded
from social security protection. Despite section 9 of the Constitution, this espouses
non-discrimination and equal treatment of all the workers in South Africa. To this
end, there is no comprehensive social security system in South Africa that is capable
of providing adequate social protection to domestic workers. For example, most
domestic workers have no pension fund, and some are not registered with
Unemployment Insurance fund and Compensation for Injuries and Diseases
schemes.
