NOW - NEW YORK STATE SUPPORT MEMO
A00628 (Wright) S5235
- Domestic Workers’ Bill of Rights
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The National Organization for Women – New York State,
Inc. supports A00628/S5235 which will enact provisions relating
to labor standards for the over 200,000 domestic workers,
known as the “Domestic Workers’ Bill of Rights.” Because
of their location in private homes and commonly immigrant
status, domestic workers, predominately women are often abused
or not entitled to the same rights and provisions which other
employees are guaranteed. It is necessary for there to be
a set of guidelines which will protect and direct the working
conditions of these hard working individuals in order for
them to avoid mistreatment at the hands of their employers.
According to a report by the ACLU in 1999, Women make up
the majority of domestic workers in the United States(98.5%)
and in New York State, and they would most benefit from a
Domestic Workers’ Bill of Rights. Often trafficked,
abused, or exploited by their employers, in secret and forced
to work under the private terms of individual employers,
such provisions as a living wage, overtime pay, vacation
time, sick leave, personal time, advance notice of termination,
and severance pay would be extremely beneficial to female
workers who are often supporting a family in addition to
themselves. Women working in the homes of others need to
have universal standards of employment which will ensure
that they are treated as fairly and humanely as their counterparts
in more public venues.
Workers would also benefit tremendously from provisions
which would prohibit their trafficking. Often lured by promises
of work and reimbursement in the United States, many women
are exploited and forced into dangerous employment situations
as domestic workers once they reach this country. New York
City, among other metropolises in New York State, is a known
primary hub for human trafficking. Thus, a Domestic Workers’ Bill
of Rights tailored to New York State’s setting for
human trafficking would be greatly advantageous to the state’s
female residents.
Terms for employment are often unwritten and undocumented.
These workers are treated as if they are invisible, and thus
their rights are invisible as well. A Domestic Workers’ Bill
of Rights requiring record keeping and notice of employees
and their working conditions, as well as the inclusion of
domestic workers under provisions of the labor law are necessary.
The Bill of Rights will also hold employers accountable for
the way they treat their domestic employees, with penalties
for violations thereof.
Women are presently being taken advantage of greatly in
the private workplace of the home as domestic workers. Because
they deserve to be protected and treated equally in New York
State, the National Organization for Women – New York
State, Inc. urges legislators to support A00628/S5235 to
enact provisions which will heighten the labor standards
of domestic workers.
Marcia A. Pappas, President, NOW-NYS, Inc.
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