New York – Roughly a year ago, lawmakers seemed poised to pass a bill providing nannies, maids and other domestic workers with the legal right to paid sick days, vacations, holidays and overtime.
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Then came the so-called Republican coup in the state Senate and a vote on the provision, known as the Domestic Workers Bill of Rights, was delayed indefinitely.
But as Crain’s New York Business reports, the bill has re-emerged in Albany, where lawmakers will vote on it next week.
If passed, the bill would pertain to any domestic attendant working for a single employer for at least 20 hours per week. The lone exceptions: Au pairs, who have rights under federal law, and those working for third parties like home health care agencies.
The bill would require employers to give domestic workers a severance package or 14 days’ notice before a dismissal, provide them with legal protection from discrimination and allow them to sue their employers in civil court.
Sponsored by Diane Savino, a Democrat representing parts of Brooklyn and Staten Island, the bill has 25 co-sponsors, one of whom, Frank Padavan of Queens, is a Republican.
The state Assembly has passed its own version of the bill, which Crain’s said is less comprehensive. If the Senate passes the measure, it would then meet with the Assembly to combine the two pieces of legislation.
If signed into the law, the bill would be the country’s first piece of legislation to establish specific rights for domestic workers, Crain’s said. It faces no organized opposition.
This legislation has the support of many progressive jewish organizations and would provide long-needed minimum standards for domestic workers. In some neighborhoods, the large percentage of such workers are undocumented aliens who fear speaking up for fear of deportation. Even those here legally have little understanding of the law and because of language barriers have limited access to the legal system. This is a law that all jews, no matter what their religious orientation, should enthusiastically support as consistent with the most important of all jewish value–tikun olam.
Maybe we should give them a 15 minute coffee break every hour and have them take a one hour nap every afternoon too!!!
Hoo-ha! What will all the people with illegal live-ins do when these women wise up and start demanding all of the protections under the proposed legislation? Potentially, it gives the government one more tool with which to prosecute employers who don’t want to put their full-time domestic help on the books! This is clearly a wake-up call.
Since most large heimeshe families with live-ins already provide these benefits, it should not have any real impact in our communities. It might be more of an issue for the very small nursing and assisted living facilities where benefits may not meet these standards. Those that cannot afford to provide such benefits to thei workers should be shut down.
This may be one of the stupidest legislations ever considered, even in New York. But not to worry, it will be widely ignored, as it deserves to be.
Pathetic. And if you can afford 20 hrs. a week help but don’t want to have to pay severance pay if, say, you suspect your hired help is stealing, or risk being sued, consider sharing and mixing it up a little, so you and another family both have two maids at 10 hrs. each week, for example.
Loopholes, my friend, is what people should resort to because there is no union or lobby for families with money or special needs…
Reply to #1 : Merely because “Tikun Olam” is the only “mitzva” or religious activity or value you supposedly engage in, does not make it the most important.
Reply to #12 : Oh really, so “Tikun Olam” now means all Mitzvos Bain Odom Lachavero? Why not Mitzvos Bain Odom Lemokom too? Oh right, they don’t give you a feeling of spiritual fulfillment, so they aren’t “Metaken et Haolam” in your warped reform influnced viewpoint!
what about those of us who get paid by the hour? why just nannies? all employees, nannies or not shoudl get this benefit why is it always for specific workers? shouldn’t there be laws for all employers and all employees? Hello?