S4515

The New York State Senate passed legislation granting domestic workers paid sick leave on a 40-21 vote, marking another expansion of protections for a historically excluded workforce. Senate Print 4515, sponsored by Sen. Ramos, builds on New York's 2010 Domestic Workers' Bill of Rights. During floor debate, Ramos invoked the legacy of Dorothy Lee Bolden, a domestic worker and civil rights organizer who founded the National Domestic Workers Union of America in 1968 and organized thousands of nannies, housekeepers, and elder-care providers. Ramos characterized domestic workers as among the original excluded workers, explicitly carved out of the National Labor Relations Act and Fair Labor Standards Act, and noted the workforce is predominantly composed of Black and immigrant women whose care work enables the broader economy. She framed the bill as correcting a historical injustice and "one of the last vestiges of Jim Crow in our state." The measure takes effect immediately. Twenty-one senators voted against the bill, all Republicans.