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**FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE**
February 11, 2009
Contact: Sarah Krauss
(212) 669-4193; (917) 541-0936
Release #:03-2009
Public Advocate Gotbaum Rallies with Caregivers, Council Members, Advocates, and Unions for Equal Rights Bill
- Bill would close loophole in Human Rights Law to include protections for caregivers -
MANHATTAN – At a rally today on the steps of City Hall, Public Advocate Betsy Gotbaum renewed her call for passage of a bill that would amend the New York City Human Rights Law to protect caregivers against employment discrimination. Gotbaum was joined by co-sponsors Bill de Blasio, Gale Brewer, and David Weprin, the United Federation of Teachers, the Transport Workers Union, the Working Families Party, A Better Balance, NOW-NYC, advocates, Council Members, and caregivers.
Int. 565-A would amend the NYC Human Rights Law to expressly prohibit employment discrimination based on an individual’s actual or perceived status as a caregiver. The legislation would add an individual’s status as a caregiver to the New York City Human Rights Law. The law currently prohibits discrimination based on characteristics such as: age, race, color, gender, disability, sexual orientation and marital and partnership status and status as a victim of domestic violence.
According to estimates from a 2008 AARP brief, nearly two million New Yorkers in the state provide unpaid care for a relative or friend, and over 50% of them balance caregiving with a full-time job. As the population of caregivers expands, there is an increasing need to establish protections against workplace discrimination
Public Advocate Gotbaum pursued the bill after her office received a call from John Dallas, a constituent who said potential employers told him that he would not be hired due to his status as a caregiver. Mr. Dallas became his mother’s full-time caregiver in 1999 after she was confined to a wheelchair as a result of diabetes. While pursuing several jobs, Mr. Dallas cooked for his mother, changed her diaper, took her blood pressure, and administered her insulin.
Public Advocate Gotbaum said, “Under the current law, New Yorkers can be punished by employers for caring for their loved ones. This loophole must be closed, and employment discrimination stopped. As baby boomers retire in greater numbers, the children of baby boomers will increasingly be caring both for their own children and for their aging parents. We need to act now, before the problem gets worse.”
Council Member de Blasio said, "We should not tolerate discrimination of any kind in our society. I am proud to stand with Public Advocate Betsy Gotbaum in supporting legislation that will end unfair treatment of caregivers at the workplace. We must stand up and protect hard working New Yorkers who have the important responsibility of caring for a loved one."
Caregiver John Dallas said, “Several employers often told me that I should put Mom in a nursing home. That’s wrong. When parents leave work to care for their children, should we suggest that they put their children up for adoption? Of course not. Caregivers should not have to fear reprisals for helping an ailing parent, just as individuals should not be treated differently because of their race, religion, age, or sexual orientation.”
Manhattan Borough President Scott M. Stringer said, “With a clear majority of working Americans caring for children, elderly or ill family members, it is time for employment laws to catch up to the growing needs of our changing workplace population and ban job discrimination on the basis of caregiving responsibilities in the same fashion that workers are protected from discrimination on the basis of race or gender.”
Council Member Brewer said, “I support Int. 565-A because the stereotyping of caregivers who are working must stop. Mothers, fathers, pregnant women, adult children caring for aging parents or workers who care for disabled family members are increasingly discriminated against. In some firms, they are less likely to be hired and less likely to be promoted. New York City human rights law must be amended to eliminate such discrimination; caregivers are often the best members of our workforce, sensitized to the needs of others and providing the best organizational skills. Since other jurisdictions do not cover this class of workers, New York City needs to provide the support.”
Council Member Weprin said, “I support Int. 565-A, but am embarrassed that we are still dealing with the issue of discrimination. No one should ever be subjected to discrimination based on their race, color, gender, religious belief, or sexual orientation or other misguided perception. However, until the time comes when discrimination is no longer an issue we must continue to protect all who may face discrimination in the workplace.”
A spokesperson from TWU Local 100 said, “The 38,000 members of the Transport Workers Union Local 100 stand firmly behind Int. 565-A. Working people should be able to provide necessary care to their family members without risking employment discrimination, whether in hiring, promotion, or job security. This initiative will fix a gaping hole in New York City’s anti-discrimination law.”
Michael Mulgrew, Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of the United Federation of Teachers, said, “It’s difficult enough for New Yorkers to keep jobs in this tough economy without the additional worry of being penalized at work for caring for a sick, injured or disabled child, parent or other relative. We should applaud those who strive to meet their obligations to both work and family because they often have no choice. Passage of this bill will help to ensure that such employees are protected on the job while caring for loved ones in need.”
Dan Cantor of the Working Families Party said, “The Working Families Party (WFP) strongly supports Int. 565, which will benefit working and middle-class families by addressing a loophole in the law. At a time when the economy is shedding thousands of jobs a day, we can’t afford to lose any more to discrimination. We applaud Public Advocate Gotbaum, as well as Council Members de Blasio and Brewer for supporting this amendment on behalf of working families, and encourage other elected officials to do the same.”
Phoebe Taubman, Equal Justice Works Fellow at A Better Balance said, "Every day workers in New York City lose jobs or suffer retaliation because they need to care for a family member. Especially during this economic downturn, no one should have their economic security threatened because of their family responsibilities. It is time to make clear that discrimination based on family responsibilities will not be tolerated in our workplaces."
Darnley D. Stewart, Esq., President of NELA/NY, the New York Affiliate of the National Employment Lawyers Association said, “The proposed legislation fills a gaping hole in substantive rights for caregivers in the workplace. As attorneys for New York City employees, we will no longer have to seek to extend other state and federal statutes to remedy discrimination against those women -- and men -- who increasingly are required to balance their work and family obligations.”
Donna Dolan, Chair, NYS Paid Leave Coalition, and Communications Workers of America International Representative, said, “No NYC worker should be treated differently or suffer loss of a job or promotion because they have taken time off for caregiving responsibilities.”
NOW-NYC Deputy Director Jean Bucaria says, “This is maternal profiling. Although discrimination on-the-job due to one’s care-giving status can happen to anyone, it is working mothers and women caregivers who overwhelmingly pay the price. They pay for it every time they are passed over for a salary increase, a promotion, or a new job opportunity.”
The proposed bill has garnered widespread support from 33 Council Members and:
A Better Balance
Alzheimer’s Association
Anti-Discrimination Policy & Action Center
Brooklyn (Kings County) Hispanic Chamber of Commerce
Children’s Health Fund
Communications Workers of America International
Congressional Glaucoma Foundation
Council of Senior Centers and Services of New York
District Council 1707
Health Outreach at New York Methodist Hospital
Hispanic Senior Action Counsel
Institute for the Puerto Rican/Hispanic Elderly, Inc
Legal Aid
Legal Momentum
Lighthouse International
MFY Legal Services, Inc
National Council of Jewish Women New York Section
National Employment Lawyers Association- NY Chapter
National Organization for Women New York City (NOW NYC)
New York City Central Labor Council
New York Immigration Coalition
New York State Paid Leave Coalition
New York Women’s Chamber of Commerce
Outten & Golden Employment Law Firm
Parent to Parent
Restaurant Opportunities Center of New York (ROCNY)
SSI Coalition of NY
Services and Advocacy for Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual & Transgender Elders (SAGE)
Stanley M. Issacs Neighborhood Center, Inc.
Transport Workers Union – Local 100
United Federation of Teachers
Washington Heights/Inwood Chamber of Commerce
Working Families Party
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