Sen. Tom Harkin (D-IA)

Fifteen U.S. Democratic senators have sent a letter to Department of Labor (DOL) Secretary Hilda Solis urging the extension of federal wage and hour laws to cover the nation’s estimated 1.5 million home health-care workers.

Background

Domestic workers were excluded from the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) that was enacted in 1938 to ensure a minimum standard of living for workers through the provision of a minimum wage, overtime pay and other protections.

In 1974 the FLSA was amended to include domestic employees such as housekeepers, full-time nannies, chauffeurs, and cleaners. However, under a narrow exception, workers providing “companionship services to individuals who because of age or disability are unable to care for themselves” remained excluded from the law.

Two years ago, under the Bush administration, the Labor Department interpreted the law to exclude home care workers, and this decision was upheld by the Supreme Court.

The current effort

Led by Iowa Sen. Tom Harkin, the  senators claim in their letter that this Supreme Court decision leaves the door open for the Labor Department to change its interpretation under a new administration (“Lawmakers want federal rules to cover home workers,” AP, June 12).

“In the three decades since the exemption was created, the numbers of home care workers and their responsibilities have expanded dramatically as the population has aged and more and more people are choosing long-term care services in their homes rather than in institutions,” they wrote. “Home care, increasingly, has become not casual work performed by a friend or family member but a full-time regular type of employment.”

They continue, “It is critical that these professional workers, who provide essential services to our nation’s elderly and disabled, have the same right to minimum wage and overtime pay as enjoyed by other workers” (“Harkin, Senators Urge Fairness for Home Care Workers,” IowaPolitics.com, June 11).

Solis’ response

DOL Secretary Hilda Solis

Solis responded on June 12 saying that she shares the senators’ concerns. “As secretary of labor, I intend to fulfill the department’s mandate to protect America’s workers, including home health care aides, who work demanding work schedules and receive low wages,” she said (“Labor Secretary ponders oversight of home workers,” AP, June 13).

She indicated that DOL is examining whether its regulations “effectively express the statutory exemption,” but didn’t say when any decisions would be made.