RIGHTS for the first time ever!

Woohoo!!!

New York State has gone and done it. Been the first to make the mark in the domestic worker sphere. I know people love to complain about Obama and how much he's not doing (guys, he's NOT a god, just a man. sometimes if you want change, you need to motivate yourself. but anyway...) but what is being dubbed 'The Nanny Bill' could not have happened in a Bush Era. So hugs all around to the Obama Camp and all its compatriots for recognizing domestic workers as people who deserve rights that many other workers have the privilege to take for granted.

The New York State Domestic Workers Bill of Rights (A1470B/S2311E) contains these first ever tidbits of freedom:

OVERTIME.

I know, breath all you nannies out there. Can you believe it? Time and a half for live outs over 40 hours/wk and for live ins over 44 hrs/wk. For all of us working 50 and 60-plus hours/wk, imagine the difference in our pockets.

ACTUAL PROTECTION.

Sounds like the mafia, right? But I'm talking legal protection on the up and up. From now on in New York State, if our bosses get weird (aka bigoted and discriminatory) with us in reference to race, gender, sexual orientation, national origin, disability, marital status, and domestic violence victim status, we can actually take them to court and sue them.

Yeah yeah!

I know most of you aren't really interested in taking anyone to court, but the fact is, if we haven't experienced a crappy situation ourselves, we've all heard of a nanny who has. In NY State, if a boss goes over the top, they are actually BREAKING A LAW. For those of us poor suckers residing in the other 49 states that don't have a 'Nanny Bill', if our bosses treat us badly, we are forced to try and find obscure laws to hold them accountable cause we don't have any federal workplace protection. So a serious 'holla' to this anti-discrimination legislation.

TEMPORARY DISABILITY PAYMENTS

Whoa there. So when we get hurt or sick, they can't just fire us and move on like many of them have been doing for eons. We might actually have time to rest up and get well and enjoy a paycheck while we do it.

PAID VACATION DAYS

Really? Awesome!

This one is a win/short term lose in my eyes. What NY State domestics get is 3 paid vacation days after a year of employment. We all know that's a slap in the face, cause we deserve more (like the 2 weeks everyone else seems to get). But I think it shows how much some lawmakers (AKA nanny employers. Yup. I said it) are opposed to giving us actual rights. All in all, I take it as a win, cause I've def had nanny jobs where paid vacation was never even an option. so having something set in stone now starts the conversation. And who knows, five years from now, I imagine nannies and other domestics in NY State will work to amend this legislation and fight to add more days to our state recognized vacation.

I'm feeling good, peoples. This is big stuff. Come on other 49 states, let's get it together!