Home care workers, like certified nursing assistants, are among the most over-worked and under-paid professions in the United States. Many home care workers often work two or three days straight without any significant breaks. These situations force workers to take brief naps in their car, grab a bite in between clients and other quick fixes. It is a disservice to the patients and families they help and it crushes many home care workers who are dedicated, hard-working and love their job.
Many of these workers would work well over 40 hours a week and make barely above the poverty line. If that sounds strange, which is because many home care workers were exempt from overtime pay and mandatory break protections. The result was an entire occupation that was continually exhausted and when that occurs everyone suffers from the home care attendants to their patients.
To combat this trend, the Department of Labor promulgated rules to that brings most home care workers under the same umbrella as most other workers. This ensures that home care workers are typically guaranteed overtime when they work more than 40 hours a week and cannot be taken advantage of by their employers.
If you believe that your employer is trying to deny you your fair wage and/or overtime then you may want to speak to an attorney that focuses his practice on workers’ rights. You put in a hard days’ work and you deserve to get paid for it. Unfortunately, many employers will do their best to keep you from accessing that fair pay. In those situations an attorney can help you get what you deserve. Don’t let anyone trample all over your rights, you control your own life.
Source: Department of Labor, “A Win for Home Care Workers,” Secretary Tom Perez, June 27, 2016
