Article: Labor
Source: NYT
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/13/opinion/in-california-stronger-workers-rights.html?nl=todaysheadlines&emc=edit_th_20130913
EDITORIAL
In California, Stronger Workers’ Rights
By THE EDITORIAL BOARD
Published: September 12, 2013
The California Senate on Wednesday passed a bill to extend basic rights to an overlooked segment of the labor force: domestic workers, mostly immigrant women, who toil in private homes without the protection of most labor laws. The bill, a scaled-back version of a measure that passed the State Assembly, is expected to land on Gov. Jerry Brown’s desk within a week. He should sign it, allowing California to join New York and Hawaii as the states that have gone furthest to bring fairness to an industry notorious for low wages, long hours and grueling conditions.
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The bill, sponsored by Assemblyman Tom Ammiano, a San Francisco Democrat, affects an estimated 90,000 to 120,000 nannies, housekeepers and caregivers for the elderly. It requires that they be paid time-and-a-half if they work more than a nine-hour day or 45-hour week.
Paid overtime is a fundamental protection, hardly revolutionary, but winning it would be a huge victory for domestic workers, whom federal law excludes from most bedrock labor protections. Mr. Brown vetoed a version of the bill last year, saying it would be hard to enforce and too costly for some private employers. The current version has been softened; it no longer requires meal and rest breaks, and it excludes part-time baby sitters and employers’ family members. It also expires in three years, unless the Legislature renews it, and calls for a commission of workers and employers to assess the law’s effect.
The battle for low-wage workers’ rights has been a struggle of decades, with incremental progress set against widening income inequality and economic stagnation. Federal inaction on issues like minimum-wage and immigration reform has made it more important for states to defend workers’ well-being and safety. A domestic workers’ Bill of Rights in California, setting standards that most other workers take for granted, would be a huge step in the right direction.
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