In December, the Obama administration proposed a new rule to bring the nation’s nearly 2 million homecare workers under the protection of the Fair Labor Standards Act’s (FLSA) minimum wage, overtime and other provisions.

But opponents who want to continue to deny these rights to homecare workers are mounting a campaign to derail the proposed rule. With the public comment period now open, they are flooding the Department of Labor with negative comments and a barrage of lies, and their congressional friends are backing a bill (H.R. 3066) that attacks the proposed rule.

You can help these hardworking homecare workers by clicking here to tell the Department of Labor to adopt the new FLSA rule for homecare workers and here to send a message to your lawmakers urging them to oppose the bill.

Homecare workers provide back-breaking personal care assistance to many older adults and individuals with disabilities. When President Obama announced the proposed rule, AFSCME President Gerald McEntee said:

In the wake of the worst recession in our lifetime, the denial of a basic minimum wage and no overtime is a double blow to the millions of home care workers who care for the most vulnerable in our society. This workforce is too critical to the independence and dignity of individuals with disabilities and older adults. Something had to be done to stabilize the workforce and address pay standard.

AFL-CIO President Trumka says the proposed rule is “a long-overdue matter of basic justice for the hundreds of thousands of workers who do the vital work of providing at-home care for our nation’s elderly and disabled citizens.”