House calls help barbers make ends meet

Islamabad : The prolonged coronavirus-induced lockdown has forced hairdressers and beauticians into making house calls to get along.

Mushtaq Ahmad, who owns a barbershop in G-10/1, told ‘The News’ that the shop closure on the government’s orders and the little likelihood of the imminent shutdown easing had prompted him to go for house calls to make ends meet.

He said the move also prevented the furlough of workers.

“I book orders and send workers to clients. I also serve important clients at home. This is how we all are managing things under restrictions,” he said.

The barbershop owner said he and his workers put on hair dressing capes, disposal caps, gloves and face masks, and sterilised tools before cutting hair or doing other work.

“That’s what maximum we can do to protect both ourselves and clients against infection,” he said.

Javeria, a beauty salon worker, said the lockdown had led to the closure of her workplace, so the employer didn’t pay her like other daily-wage staff members.

She said she visited regular customers at their places for haircutting and colouring, waxing, pedicure, manicure and massage, served neighbours on their houses, and offered house calls on social media as well.

The salon worker said she used hand sanitisers and took all possible precautionary measures against the virus during work and left the rest to the Almighty Allah.

“A mother of three children and a wife of a salesman, who is out of work these days, I’ve to do all that to have enough money to buy essentials,” she said.

Some barbers have put up makeshift haircutting arrangements inside own homes but they work in secrecy to prevent the police crackdown.

Doctors call the practice a health risk saying both barbers and their clients are vulnerable to novel coronavirus (COVID-19).

Dr Wasim Khawaja of the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences insisted that social distancing and personal hygiene were imperative to prevent infections, so the visit of hairdressers and beauticians to their clients could spread COVID-19.

He said he understood the economic impact of the lockdown on the life of low-paid daily wagers but the latter should also think that if the virus harmed them, then how their dependents would pull through thereafter. “Livelihood at the cost of one’s life is what at least I won’t recommend,” he said.