OLYMPIA, Wash. — Dozens of domestic workers rallied at the state capitol in Olympia on Monday, calling for better workplace protections.
The workers, including nannies, gardeners and house cleaners, urged lawmakers to pass Senate Bill 6247 and its companion House Bill 2511.
The bills, coined the Domestic Workers Bill of Rights, would require domestic workers earn at least the minimum wage and overtime along with certain meal and rest breaks. They would also require written agreements with employment terms, and fired workers must receive either severance pay or a two-week termination notice or four weeks for live-in workers. Retaliation would also be banned.
The bills received their first hearings Monday in the Senate Committee on Labor & Commerce and the House Committee on Labor & Workplace Standards. They were introduced at the request of Gov. Jay Inslee and Attorney General Bob Ferguson.
Inslee turned out at the rally to show his support saying those who do some of the hardest work in the state should be given the same benefits as the rest of the workforce.
“The word domestic worker comes from domicile. These are folks who care for us as we age, who take care of our children, who take care of our homes, who are doing difficult work,” Inslee said.
The statewide bills follow labor protections that Seattle enacted last year. In July, a law went into effect giving domestic workers the right to Seattle’s minimum wage, uninterrupted meal and rest breaks and protections against sexual harassment and discrimination.