The Direct Care News 
For direct care workers and their allies January 28, 2014
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Join Us Tomorrow for a National Discussion about Advancing Women and Families
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Fair pay, paid sick days, paid family and medical leave, and affordable child care are fundamental policy reforms that need to be on the national agenda. Join Direct Care Alliance, our allies, and champions in Congress tomorrow for a national tele-townhall event. You will hear from--and can ask questions of--House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi, Lilly Ledbetter, working women from across America, and Congresswomen championing these critical issues. Just fill out this simple online form to register for the call tomorrow at 8:30 p.m. ET. |
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Operations Cease, Good Works Live on for Florida Direct Care Worker Association
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 | | Terry Bucher (L) and Joan Leah |
At the end of this month, the Florida Professional Association of Care Givers will shut our doors after nearly 20 years. Endings are always hard, and this one is particularly difficult for those of us who love our profession and understand the need to advocate for it. However, the work FPACG has done will not be forgotten. FPACG originated in September 1995 as The Nurse Assistant Educational Support Group, formed by Margaret T. Carleton-Bucher, LPN--or Terry, as she has been known to hundreds of members since then. I am one of them, and I am very grateful for the opportunity to have been a member and board president of FPACG. Read the rest of Joan Leah's statement and Terry's letter announcing the closing of FPACG.
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Direct from Washington, D.C.
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Watch tonight's State of the Union address! Tonight at 9pm Eastern, President Obama will deliver his annual State of the Union address. There are several ways to watch the speech and follow the event. You can watch, ask questions, and see responses from senior White House advisors or get involved in the conversation that will be taking place on Facebook and Twitter during the speech, to help bring attention to key issues--like labor protections, better wages, health insurance and paid family and medical leave--that affect direct care workers and their families. To join the conversation, follow DCA's Twitter page, join the Thunderclap conversation, or tweet about the speech using #SOTU.
U.S. Supreme Court Hears Case About Home Care Workers and Unions: Last Tuesday, the U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments in Harris v. Quinn, a case about whether states can recognize a union to represent home care workers who work in consumers' homes instead of in institutions, and whether public sector unions can collect money--for things like contract negotiation, but not political activities--from workers who don't want union representation. The case is brought by a group of Illinois personal care aides in the state's Medicaid-funded consumer-directed care program. The Court's decision will have a significant impact not only on collective bargaining and its ability to improve working conditions, but also on quality, continuity and availability of home care, services and support to meet booming demand. Learn more
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Aging Today Outlines How the Home Care Rule Was Won
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 "While the extension of minimum wage and overtime protections to homecare workers was a great win, a tremendous amount of advocacy is needed to maintain it," write Direct Care Alliance Executive Director Carla Washington and National Advocacy Director Jessica Brill Ortiz in the January-February issue of Aging Today, the bimonthly newspaper of the American Society on Aging. "We continue to work with our allies to ensure that the regulations are not derailed by Congress. We are also working to ensure that workers, consumers, employers and other stakeholders nationwide understand what the rule means for them--and why it is a victory for us all." Their article, Recent Victory for Homecare Workers is a Win for Advocates, outlines why home care workers were excluded from federal Fair Labor Standards Act protections and how DCA and its allies have worked to undo that longstanding injustice.
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