Illinois Domestic Workers Claim Victory in 5-Year Campaign For Basic Workplace Protections
Friday’s bill signing makes Illinois 7th state to provide domestic workers with legal protections
Decades after the passage of the 1938 federal Fair Labor Standards Act, which excluded domestic workers and was mimicked by many states, including Illinois, Gov. Rauner signed House Bill 1288 into law last Friday, granting Illinois domestic workers the same protections that other workers have had for generations.
After a five-year campaign by the Illinois Domestic Workers Coalition, Illinois home cleaners, nannies, and home care workers will now have basic workplace protections under state law.
The new law, sponsored by Senator Ira Silverstein (D-8th District) in the Senate, and Rep. Elizabeth Hernandez (D-24th District) in the House, gives nannies, housecleaners, home care workers, and other domestic workers the same employment protections that workers in other industries have by amending four state laws that currently exclude domestic workers. This includes the Minimum Wage Law, the Illinois Human Rights Act, the One Day of Rest in Seven Act, and the Wages of Women and Minors Act.
The new law will ensure that all domestic workers receive the state minimum wage and protection against sexual harassment, as well as a day of rest for workers employed by one employer for at least 20 hours a week.
Domestic workers from the Black, Latino, Filipino, and Polish communities; families who employ domestic workers; faith and labor leaders and House sponsor Rep. Elizabeth Hernandez will attend a Press conference and celebration announcing historic passage into law of the Illinois Domestic Workers’ Bill of Rights. It will be held Tuesday, August 16 at 10 a.m., at Sargent Shriver National Center on Poverty Law, 50 E. Washington, Suite 500, Chicago.
The bill’s signing makes Illinois the 7th state in the U.S. with domestic worker protections. The law will take effect Jan. 1, 2017.
The Illinois Domestic Workers’ Coalition is powered by local organizations, including AFIRE Chicago, Arise Chicago, Latino Union, Sargent Shriver National Center on Poverty Law, Women Employed, Heartland Alliance, and SEIU-HCII, as well as domestic workers, advocacy and community groups, and allies. The Coalition is supported by the National Domestic Workers Alliance (NDWA), the nation’s leading voice for dignity and fairness for the millions of domestic workers in the United States. For more information, please visit: www.respectallwork.org
