New California Employment Law Protects Domestic Workers
Employment law
In March 2011, a movement began in California with increased employment rights of domestic employees - housekeepers, nannies and personal attendants. Now, greater than two and half years later, Governor Jerry Brown signed AB 241 into law.
Employment law
The newest law, also called the Domestic Workers' Bill, was reintroduced by Assemblyman Tom Ammiano (D-San Francisco) after it had been defeated within the California state legislature last year. California is simply the second state in the Union to pass a law of the kind, following The big apple that passed their particular form of the bill in 2010.
Domestic workers include those who are used by a private household, or by a company in the medical industry, that are hired to operate in a private home. They could be either in charge of assisting, feeding or dressing a young child, and supervising and improving the elderly, or individuals with mental or physical handicaps.
Industry Statistics
Proponents of the law suggest that domestic workers represent probably the most abused classes of employees in the united states. The country's Domestic Workers Alliance and Center for Urban Economic Development in the University of Illinois at Chicago conducted a survey this year which revealed these startling statistics:
About 67 percent of live-in staff is paid below minimum wage;
The median hourly wage of those workers is $6.15;
Only 4 percent of workers receive employer-provided insurance;
65 percent don't have any health insurance coverage;
In California, almost 70 % of domestic workers are Latina;
93 percent of domestic workers are women.
Provisions with the Bill
The bill activly works to make sure the following six rights for domestic employees:
Overtime pay;
Meal and rest breaks;
Three paid sick days;
Workers' compensation coverage;
The right to use kitchen facilities; and
The directly to have some hours for sleep (8 hours recommended, with some possible exceptions).
The newest law goes into impact on January 1, 2014, as well as that domestic workers and personal attendants get paid time-and-a-half for any hours worked more than nine hours in almost any single day, or even more than 45 hours in one week.
The previous failed bill included additional benefits including covering the cost of living increases, 30 days notice of termination and certain Cal OSHA protections. However all these have already been omitted from the current version from concern which they turn into an unreasonable burden on low-income, elderly or disabled individuals who require full-time care.
The outcome to the "Employer"
It is estimated that approximately 62,000 personal attendants in California will probably be suffering from the newest law. While this might be a boon for that domestic worker industry, it could provide an adverse influence on ab muscles families and folks who require these types of services the most. The improved labor costs imposed by AB 241 will definitely force many families and employers to scale back about the caregiver services they currently utilize, or would force people who require around-the-clock choose to employ multiple workers so that you can stay away from the overtime and rest-period requirements. Consequently, this might negatively change up the domestic worker industry as employers hire fewer workers. So while this new California employment law could be viewed as a significant win for the industry, the long-term impact is probably not felt for years to come.