There is no fixed wage for a domestic worker. The wage usually depends on what the employer is willing to pay or what the domestic worker is willing to accept. 

In other words, an employer can set a very small payment for a domestic worker, since there is no legal obligation thereafter. When domestic workers enter the labour market, they usually don’t know what their rights are. The minimum wage in Uganda was set in 1984 and has not been revised since then.

Domestic work is one of the oldest occupations for women in world history. It has links to slavery and various forms of servitude, including colonialism. It is an unregulated and undervalued activity because, in most of the countries, labour laws are not applicable to the domestic workers.

In a new convention adopted by ILO in June 2011 (c189), domestic work is defined as the “work performed in or for a household or households”. Domestic work is different from the care work performed by members of a household as part of a family responsibility and without creating an employment relationship.

Domestic work includes (in a household or households)

1. Cleaning
2. Washing, ironing (clothes, dishes)
3. Ironing
4. Cooking (chef)
5. Security guards (home)
6. Gardening
7. Driving (chauffeur)
8. Childcare/Babysitting
9. Eldercare
10. Taking care of ill persons or persons with disabilities
11. Taking care of animals/pets etc.
12. Assistance in other household daily chores

The new convention requires the provision of basic/fundamental rights to domestic workers on par with all other workers. Moreover, it requires that:

1. Domestic workers are informed of their conditions of employment in an understandable manner through a written contract;
2. Domestic workers are made to work only normal hours of work (for example, 48 hours a week in Pakistan and India) and other provisions like overtime compensation, periods of daily and weekly rest and annual paid leave are complied with;
3. Minimum age and minimum wage regulations (as are the norm in a country) are complied with;
4. Wages are to be paid in cash, however, only a limited portion of wages may be in kind.

For migrant domestic workers, the convention requires that a written contract must be signed and handed over to a worker before he/she crosses the national boundary. However, this provision is not applicable when people enjoy the freedom of movement through some bilateral or multilateral agreements. This provision is not applicable in the case of EU as well.

The Employment Act 2006 states that there is no permit requirement for one to recruit a domestic servant for employment. However, beyond this, there is no other specific provision in the constitution of Uganda or the labour laws regarding domestic workers in Uganda.