SEATTLE – La Representante Demócrata por Washington, Pramila Jayapal, afirma que presentará al nuevo Congreso un Proyecto de Ley (“Bill of Rights”) para salvaguardar los derechos de trabajadoras y trabajadores domésticos.

La iniciativa busca dar un amplio abanico de protecciones a quienes laboran en domicilios familiares, incluyendo derechos laborales y salvaguardas ante posibles acosos en el hogar.

Además busca establecer prácticas justas en cuanto a horarios, descansos y pago de ausencias por enfermedad. Jayapal dice que la iniciativa toma en cuenta los conceptos de justicia de sexo y el nivel socioeconómico de una fuerza laboral en su mayoría compuesta por mujeres inmigrantes y de color, que ganan sueldos en el nivel de pobreza.

“Las trabajadoras domésticas cuidan a la gente que más queremos en la vida, ¿verdad? Nuestros padres, nuestros ancianos, nuestros niños. Y tenemos que asegurarnos de que tengan un pago adecuado y la protección necesaria para que puedan ser más eficientes haciendo su trabajo.”

Jayapal citó a la Alianza Nacional de Trabajadoras Domésticas (“National Domestic Workers Alliance”), al decir que “se trata del trabajo que hace posibles todos los otros trabajos.” Y que es de suma importancia que se incluya una disposición para que haya acuerdos por escrito obligatorios entre quienes contratan y quienes son contratados.

Ya son ocho los estados que han promulgado este año leyes protegiendo el trabajo doméstico; Seattle fue la primera ciudad de los Estados Unidos en hacerlo.

Sterling Harders es la Presidenta del Sindicato Internacional de Empleados de Servicio 775 (”Service Employees International Union 775”), que representa a los trabajadores de cuidados de largo plazo en los estados de Washington y Montana.

Afirma que el trabajo doméstico de todo tipo es subestimado. Lo dejaron fuera de la Ley de Salud y Seguridad Ocupacional (“Occupational Safety and Health Act”) de 1970, y tanto trabajadoras como trabajadores generalmente carecen de protección bajo la Ley de Derechos Civiles (“Civil Rights Act”), la que excluye lugares de trabajo con menos de 15 empleados –caso en el que se encuentra prácticamente la totalidad de hogares–. Harders comenta que es hora de dignificar esta profesión.

“Esta gente es de veras la espina dorsal de la sociedad, y hace un trabajo clave para el funcionamiento exitoso de nuestra sociedad. Sin embargo durante años ha sido ignorada, excluida de la protección básica y empujada afuera.”

Dice que siete de cada diez washingtonianos necesitarán cuidados al final de su vida, y a medida que la ola de “Baby Boomers” va envejeciendo, la necesidad de contar con cuidados en el hogar crece rápidamente; y advierte que la carencia de protecciones para los trabajos en el hogar podría dificultar la satisfacción de esa necesidad.

Harders añade que la naturaleza de estos empleos frecuentemente significa que la gente trabaje aislada, lo que les hace vulnerables a sufrir un abuso.

“Problemas de acoso sexual y de inseguridad en el trabajo son más bien la regla que la excepción. Así que siento que en esta industria en especial es sumamente importante que pongamos en su lugar las protecciones básicas.”


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A case before the U.S. Supreme Court could have implications for the country's growing labor movement. Justices will hear oral arguments in Starbucks versus McKinney today to determine if the bar should be raised for the National Labor Relations Board when it seeks to impose court-ordered injunctions on companies.

David Groves, communications director with the Washington State Labor Council, said the Supreme Court could further undermine the power of the NLRB, the independent federal agency that protects employees' rights.

"We already have weak labor laws in this country that have such minor penalties for breaking union organizing laws that companies routinely do it, and this is another opportunity for them to weaken labor laws even further," he argued.

The case involves Starbucks' firing of seven employees in Memphis during their union campaign in 2021. The coffee company says it rehired the workers and denies wrongdoing. If the justices rule in favor of Starbucks, it could make it harder for the NLRB to seek court orders.

Groves said the law states that workers have a right to organize unions in their workplace without coercion or retaliation from their employers.

"That's all fine and good but if the penalty's not significant enough, then they'll just go ahead and break that law and consider it the cost of doing business if they have to pay a fine two years down the road," he explained.

Groves said his and other labor organizations support the passage of the Protecting the Right to Organize or PRO Act in Congress, which would strengthen labor laws, including providing greater authority to the NLRB.


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The U.S. House has approved a measure to expand the Child Tax Credit. It would help 16 million children from low-income families in Indiana and nationwide. Despite bipartisan support, the bill is stalled in the Senate. Advocates praise the credit's pivotal role in combating child poverty, pointing to its effectiveness in the past, and especially during the pandemic, when it was broadly expanded.

Candace Baker, an Indianapolis mother of 4, said the previous tax-credit expansion worked for her family, and she wants it reinstated.

"Having a child, and I had to get on some government-assistance programs. My grandmother never did because she just didn't want that stigma over her, but I utilized those services when I had a child. I didn't want to either, but I'm like, I need this support," she explained.

Congress approved expanding the Child Tax Credit in 2021. However, the expansion has expired, leaving families without vital assistance. As the Senate deliberates, pressure mounts on lawmakers to prioritize the needs of struggling families and secure passage. Opponents believe taxpayers who don't work should not be eligible. Some Republicans also contend the provision may incentivize parents to leave the workforce.

Families reeling from the pandemic received between $300 and $360 per month per child from the expanded tax credit. It lifted 3.7 million children from poverty. Baker currently works for a food bank in Indianapolis where she says she is able to help neighbors in need and give back to the community.

"Being able to be a voice for those who have no voice - that is my motto. Even though where you start, you don't have to stay there. So, that is my biggest motto that I stand on: You may start here, you may be on government assistance, you may be in poverty, but that does not have to be your end game," she said.

Families who benefited from the increased aid were more than twice as likely to pay their overdue rent during the initial stages of the pandemic. The Child Tax Credit did not pass in time for this year's tax deadline, and its prospects for the future are uncertain.


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Washington joins a handful of states to do away with mandatory meetings for employees on political or religious matters.

Sometimes known as captive audience meetings, the gatherings were seen as a way for employers to give their opinions on subjects like unionization, and held potential consequences for employees who didn't attend. Lawmakers passed a bill this session allowing workers to skip the meetings without repercussions.

Sen. Karen Keiser, D-Des Moines, a sponsor of the bill, said we live in a divided society where emotions run high on political topics.

"This bill simply protects employees to have a real choice on whether or not to attend a meeting called by their boss to be told about some political or religious issue," Keiser explained.

Keiser pointed out the legislation is nonpartisan. For instance, employers could not force employees to attend anti-union meetings, but also could not force them to attend a meeting about the importance of reproductive rights. The bill takes effect June 6.

Keiser noted the bill likely got across the finish line this session because of the uptick in union organizing and support for labor. She added there are widely known stories of Starbucks managers, for example, requiring employees to attend anti-union meetings while the employees organized the workplace.

"Employees have been forced to attend meetings to listen to the boss or the employer basically tell them why they shouldn't join a union," Keiser observed.

Washington is the sixth state to pass a law prohibiting attendance at captive audience meetings. Connecticut, Maine, Minnesota and New York have passed similar laws in recent years. Oregon passed a law allowing workers to skip such meetings without repercussions in 2010.


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