CA Senate votes for overtime pay for domestic workers

CA Senate Passes Domestic Worker Bill of Rights

On the heels of the AFL-CIO highlighting the domestic worker movement in the Golden State, Domestic Worker Bill AB 241 Wins Senate Vote 22 – 12

Sacramento– Today California Senators voted in favor of the Domestic Worker Bill of Rights AB 241 (Ammiano), supporting the efforts to extend equal labor rights to all its workers. The vote follows the quadrennial AFL-CIO conference, where the international, national, and state-wide movements for domestic were honored by labor leaders.

“We have been fighting for basic protections like overtime for years in this state, this vote shows that we are not alone and that our voices are being heard. We look forward to working with the Governor as the next step,” said Rosa Sanchez a caregiver from Los Angeles who is attending the convention.

Although domestic work has been regulated in California since 1976, many workers remain excluded from basic labor protections like overtime. This gap is based on the outdated notion that they work as “a source of rewarding activity” or “merely for supplemental income.”

AB 241 would provide all domestic workers who care for California’s homes and families with the basic labor protection that other workers enjoy including overtime pay. Domestic workers and community leaders met at the capitol building to witness the Senate‘s floor vote on the bill.

Bill author Assemblyman Tom Ammiano stated, “Senate passage of the Domestic Workers Bill of Rights is one more step in a movement to make sure these workers get the kind of labor protections they deserve. The movement is taking place all over the country and won’t be over until domestic workers rights are spelled out in every state. When this bill gets final approval and signature, California will be a leader in that movement.”

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