Across sectors, companies often depend on third-party agencies for essential operational functions, security, housekeeping, canteen services, maintenance, or transport. These workers are deployed at the company’s premises and perform duties integral to daily operations. Yet, they are technically employed and paid by an external agency. Smaller establishments may similarly hire a domestic worker to manage household requirements.
This triangular arrangement, between the company, the agency, and the worker, creates a critical question when it comes to workplace safety: to what extent is the company responsible for ensuring protection against sexual harassment for workers who are not on its direct payroll?
The answer lies in how the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013 defines key terms such as employee and domestic worker, and how other labour laws define the principal employer.
Understanding Who Qualifies as an “Employee”
Under Section 2(f) of the PoSH Act, an employee includes:
“A person employed at a workplace for any work on a regular, temporary, ad hoc or daily wage basis, either directly or through an agent, including a contractor, with or without the knowledge of the principal employer…”
This definition is intentionally broad. It covers every person working for or in connection with the organisation, whether they are permanent staff, contract labour, probationers, apprentices, or even unpaid volunteers. Importantly, it also includes those hired through contractors or agencies, regardless of whether the company (principal employer) directly supervises them.
Similarly, Section 2(e) defines a domestic worker as:
“A woman who is employed to do household work in any household for remuneration, whether in cash or kind, either directly or through any agency, on a temporary, permanent, part-time or full-time basis.”
This inclusion extends protection under the PoSH Act to women working in private households, a crucial step toward recognising homes as workplaces too.
The Role of the Principal Employer
To understand accountability, we refer to the Contract Labour (Regulation and Abolition) Act, 1970, which defines:
(g) “Principal employer” means —
(iv) in any other establishment, any person responsible for the supervision and control of the establishment.
(c) “Contractor” means a person who undertakes to produce a given result for the establishment through contract labour, or who supplies contract labour for any work of the establishment.”
In simple terms, the company that supervises or controls the work — even if performed by agency-deployed workers — is considered the principal employer. The law holds this employer responsible for providing a workplace that is safe, inclusive, and free from sexual harassment for all workers, irrespective of who issues their pay slips.
A Case That Shaped India’s Workplace Laws
To see this principle in practice, let’s revisit a real and defining story.
An international NGO partnered with the Rajasthan government to run a community program aimed at preventing child marriages. Beena, a social worker, joined the program and successfully intervened in one such case. Her act of courage was met with brutal retaliation — she was gang-raped by a group of men in the village while performing her official duties.
Beena’s case mirrors the story of Bhanwari Devi, a grassroots worker employed under a government program supported by the United Nations in the early 1990s. Despite being assaulted while on duty, Bhanwari Devi did not receive justice through the criminal justice system. Her case, however, became the catalyst for landmark change.
In 1997, the Vishakha Guidelines were issued by the Supreme Court, laying the foundation for workplace sexual harassment prevention frameworks across India. These guidelines eventually led to the enactment of the PoSH Act, 2013.
Lessons and Legal Implications
Bhanwari Devi’s case established two critical principles that continue to shape employer obligations today:
Every organisation, public or private, formal or informal, must ensure a safe working environment for women.
Safety cannot depend on the mode of employment. Contractual status does not dilute an employer’s duty of care.
Responsibility extends beyond direct employees.
The principal employer — in Bhanwari Devi’s case, the Rajasthan government — was legally and ethically bound to ensure her safety while she was performing duties on its behalf.
Accordingly, modern organisations that rely on third-party staff are not exempt from responsibility. Their Internal Committee (IC) must be accessible to all women working at their premises, including agency staff, interns, consultants, or domestic workers.
They must also:
- Include clear references to contract and agency workers in their PoSH Policy.
- Conduct joint awareness sessions that include all categories of staff.
- Collaborate with contractors to ensure complaint mechanisms are visible and functional.
- Take joint responsibility for inquiry and redressal when incidents involve agency-deployed personnel.
The broader message
The law’s intent is not limited to compliance, it is rooted in dignity, equality, and safety for all working women. Whether a person is hired directly or indirectly, their right to a harassment-free environment remains absolute.
The story of Bhanwari Devi, and the laws that emerged from her courage, remind us that workplace safety cannot be outsourced. Every organization, regardless of its structure or hierarchy, carries the responsibility to uphold that right.
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