Improving Working Conditions for Domestic Workers through Regulatory Reform

A CRITICAL BUT VULNERABLE WORKFORCE

Domestic Workers are nannies, elderly companions, and housekeepers. The vast majority are immigrant women of color. Without the work of domestic workers the economy would grind to a halt.  Domestic workers support their families and enable many sectors of professionals to work and have leisure time.  Yet, the workforce is among the most vulnerable, suffering some of the most egregious abuses faced by any workforce.  Domestic workers migrate in search of means to support their families and alternatives to the poverty faced by nations of the global South. Due to ongoing racial and gender inequality in the labor market, linked to the history of slavery, domestic workers remain excluded—by law—from almost all labor protections.

Over the past century, the United States has improved federal labor standards in order to guarantee that all workers are paid fair wages; able to work under safe and healthy conditions; protected from discriminatory and abusive treatment; and equipped with the right to engage in collective bargaining.  However, domestic workers consistently have been excluded from these most basic workplace protections. The exclusion of domestic workers from many labor protections reflects the way that household work has been historically under-valued    

REGULATIONS MATTER!

• Regulations are rules that are designed to fill in the details of the broad concepts mandated by the legislature in statutes passed by Congress.
• Unlike statutes, which can only be changed by the Congress, regulations can be adjusted by the Obama administration in order to improve the Department of Labor’s ability to do its job well and to enforce the laws fairly.
• While legislative change is still a vital goal in order to address the exclusion of domestic workers, reforming regulations is an important first step in recognizing the value of domestic work and protecting domestic workers.
• The current U.S. Department of Labor has the opportunity to bring domestic workers out of the shadows and under the protection of meaningful, enforceable workplace regulations.

Working Toward a Solution --- REFORM REGULATIONS TODAY!

1)       Require Employers to Keep Records of Hours Worked by Live-in Workers

Unlike other employers, employers of domestic workers are not required to keep daily records of hours worked.  Record-keeping requirements will force employers to pay workers for actual hours worked and help prevent wage theft.

2)             Reform Meal and Lodging Credits

It is unfair to allow employers to charge their workers for a cot next to a sofa and inadequate food.  If employers want to claim credit for meals and lodging provided to live-in domestic workers, they should be required to provide nutritious meals and a private room and their should be clear limitations about how much can be deducted from a workers’ paycheck for room and board.

3)       Reform Regulations Governing Compensation for Sleeping Time

Domestic workers who are on-call all night when they sleep in the same room as their charges should be compensated for this time.

1. Create a specialized Domestic Workers’ Bureau within the Department of Labor that would serve as a point of contact for domestic workers seeking to bring complaints against their employers and would be responsible for a public education campaign to ensure domestic workers and their employers are aware of their rights and responsibilities.