Following Federal Government’s Extension of Overtime Benefits To Home Health Care Aides, California Signs Law Granting Overtime Pay To Domestic Workers

After decades of being mistreated under the law, domestic workers are finally being recognized for their hard work and long hours. Recently, the White House announced that these workers will finally be included under the Fair Labor Standards Act and be entitled to minimum wage and overtime pay. The long awaited amendment will take effect January 1, 2015 and will impact some 2 million home care workers, one of the fastest-growing occupations in the country.

Now, California’s Governor Brown has just signed into law a bill mandating overtime pay for domestic workers in California – with the exception of babysitters. Under this new law, domestic workers including housekeepers and cleaners time and a half for any work in excess of nine hours a day or 45 hours a week.

If you have questions about changes in the FLSA and how the changes may affect your job, it’s a good idea to consult with an experienced Georgia wage and hour attorney. A skilled Atlanta overtime pay attorney can provide you critical advice concerning your right to minimum wage.

The Calfiornia bill will go into effect in January 2014. The bill’s author called the overtime requirements “another step in the movement to get these workers” adequate protections. “Domestic workers are primarily women of color, many of them immigrants, and their work has not been respected in the past,” he said Thursday in a statement. “Now they will be entitled to overtime like just about every other California working person.” Labor groups and recent studies have concluded that employers often mistreat domestic workers.

The California bill is significant. When the state laws differ from the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), an employer must comply with the standard most protective to employees. This means that domestic workers in California will likely be entitled to greater protections earlier than those workers covered by federal law.

If you have questions about the FLSA or how any changes in wage and hour laws may affect you, it is a good idea to consult with a knowledgeable Atlanta wage and hour attorney right away. A top Georgia FLSA attorney can walk you through the laws concerning your pay and ensure you are getting all the wages you are entitled to.