California domestic workers push for new health and safety law

Supporters of a bill to give domestic workers the same safety protections required by law for other types of employees march past the Capitol in Sacramento, Calif., Tuesday, Aug. 29, 2023. The bill, SB686 by Sen. María Elena Durazo, D-Los Angeles, would give those hired by private employers to do domestic work protections under the California Occupation Safety and Health Act. Rich Pedroncelli – freelancer/AP

SACRAMENTO, California – Hundreds of domestic workers, many of them Filipinos, demonstrated in the state capital Sacramento to support a bill expanding protections for domestic workers —nannies, house cleaners, house help, home caregivers — many of whom do not get help when they get sick or injured on the job.

Under current law, there are very few provisions ensuring safe and healthy working conditions for an estimated 300,000 domestic workers in California.

Marching from the State Capitol to the Legislative Swing Space, the demonstrators “swept away” outdated policies.

Irene Maliglig, 49, says domestic work is not for everyone, but she enjoys it. “I believe, as a Filipino, we have this trait of being hospitable, being passionate about what we’re doing,” Maliglig told Spectrum News 1. She is a full-time caregiver in the City of Carson and is also the mother of two children.

She spoke of having to be around exposed chemicals from cleaning products and the physical challenge of taking care of a patient who is much bigger than her.

State Sen. Maria Elena Durazo, a Democrat from Los Angeles, is pushing for the passage of Senate Bill 686, which will expand CAL/OSHA protections for domestic workers who don’t get help if they get sick or injured on the job.

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Durazo pushed for a similar bill in 2020, but Gov. Gavin Newsom vetoed it, citing issues about treating people’s homes like workplaces. Durazo set up an advisory body to draft guidelines for the health and safety of domestic workers.

“No matter how many times it takes to the California Legislature and Gov. Gavin Newsom — that now, now is the time to stand on the right side of history,” Spectrum News 1 quoted Durazo.

“This campaign is part of a long legacy of women of color, of immigrant women standing up for what is right,” said Maegan Ortiz, the executive director of the Institute of Popular Education of Southern California. “Domestic workers have waited long enough and we are here to send that message loud and clear throughout Sacramento.”