National Domestic Workers Alliance

============================

“One worker got COVID at work from her boss’s children. She was from Haiti and undocumented and didn’t have health insurance. She was afraid to go to the hospital and she died. We buried her.” — June, 58, elder care worker and NDWA Organizer

John — At the beginning of the pandemic, Black immigrant domestic workers were classified as ‘essential’. And rightly so — domestic workers, most of whom are women of color, are a vital and often invisible workforce within the healthcare and broader care economy.

Despite the important role they play in our economy and society the majority of domestic workers have no healthcare or other benefits and many could not access resources that were being offered to help individuals and families survive illness, job loss, eviction and food insecurity during the pandemic.

These essential workers went to work when they were able, putting themselves and their families at risk so that the rest of us could get the care and services we needed. Two years later, Black immigrant domestic workers are still experiencing the devastating impact of the pandemic and many of the fears they had in 2020 around work and safety – from losing their jobs, incomes, and homes – have come true.

Our new report, entitled “The Other Side of the Storm” [[link removed]] and published in partnership with the Institute for Policy Studies (IPS) Black Worker Initiative, shows the pandemic exposed these already vulnerable workers to new dangers while perpetuating the mistreatment and lack of standards Black domestic workers have experienced for decades.

The report, featured on the Essence magazine website [[link removed]] , is a follow-up to NDWA and IPS’s initial ‘Notes from the Storm’ report, which examined the experiences of Black immigrant domestic workers in Miami, New York, and Massachusetts just as the pandemic hit. ‘The Other Side of the Storm’ [[link removed]] returned to these regions in 2021 and features data and anecdotes from surveys, focus groups, and interviews of more than 1,000 respondents.

The report’s findings show that:

- In 2020, 65% feared eviction or disruption of utility services. By February 2021, 41% confirmed that their fears had actualized.
- 68% work without an employment contract, with undocumented workers 80% more likely to work without one.
- 78% have not received benefits from their employers, such as paid time off or paid medical or health insurance.
- 57% of survey respondents identified health insurance as the benefit they most desire.

READ THE REPORT → [[link removed]]

[link removed] [[link removed]]

“We should get some form of short health care; and, we shouldn’t have to come to work sick. Some people just do that. I could get your sickness and carry it home to my family. But you don’t want to give me time.” — Marlene, 76, semi-retired direct care provider for the elderly, New York, NY

It took a global pandemic for our nation to realize that domestic workers and many other workers, largely in low-paid service jobs, where immigrants, women and women of color make up the bulk of the workforce, are essential to our economy.

Even though domestic work makes all other work possible, it is devalued, largely unprotected in the workplaces, and many continue to be excluded by core workplace laws and benefits at the federal and state levels. Undocumented workers experience greater vulnerability and expolitation due to their immigration status.

When asked what they needed and wanted to make domestic work a good job [[link removed]] , survey respondents named the following:

- Raise the wages for home healthcare and childcare workers across the country.
- Provide free childcare for working families.
- Provide free healthcare for anyone who cannot afford it.
- Pay family caregivers who take care of a relative full-time.
- Create a pathway to citizenship for all immigrants.

READ THE REPORT → [[link removed]]

It is unacceptable that these essential workers lack even the most basic labor rights.

These responses clearly demonstrate the need for Congress to invest in child care, Medicaid’s home and community-based services (HCBS) and other health care initiatives [[link removed]] . An investment in HCBS would raise wages and standards for home care workers, enable unpaid caregivers to be compensated for their labor, and expand services to people with disabilities and older adults.

It is also beyond time for Congress to act to pass the National Domestic Workers Bill of Rights [[link removed]] to increase protections, raise standards and provide benefits as respondents reported lack of written contracts and lack of paid time off.

If we work to create protections for Black immigrant domestic workers and domestic workers, we will begin to create the care infrastructure this country needs, one that will ensure that all of our families make it to the other side of the storm.

In solidarity,

Allison Julien, WeDiB Director
National Domestic Workers Alliance

============================

Thank you for being a dedicated supporter of the National Domestic Workers Alliance!

We're working day and night to win respect, recognition, and labor rights and protections for the more than 2.5 million nannies, house cleaners, and homecare workers.

Donate → [[link removed]]

The majority of domestic workers sit at the center of some of our nation’s most decisive issues because of who they are and what they do: they are women – mostly women of color, immigrants, mothers, and low-wage workers. They are impacted by almost every policy affecting the future of our economy, democracy and country.

Domestic workers can lead us toward a new, inclusive vision for the future for all of us -- and your grassroots support is the fuel that can get us there.

Donate → [[link removed]]

============================

Website: [link removed]
Facebook: [link removed]
Twitter: [link removed]
Contact Us: [email protected]

This email was sent by the National Domestic Workers Alliance, the nation’s leading voice for dignity and fairness for the millions of domestic workers in the United States.

National Domestic Workers Alliance | 45 Broadway, Suite 320 | New York, NY 10006 | United States

If you believe you received this message in error or wish to no longer receive email from us, please unsubscribe: [link removed] .