Hundreds of fuming home care workers rallied outside of City Hall on Monday to demand an end to the 24-hour workday while also denouncing City Council Speaker Adrienne Adams for failing to pass a bill halting the long labor hours.
Marching up and down Broadway and Murray Streets, the group—made up of primarily women of color—took out their frustration with Adams by yelling “No more 24!” as they repeatedly passed the government building. According to home attendants themselves, they are forced to care for the sick and elderly for days on end without being relieved, creating a never-ending cycle. In a conversation with amNewYork Metro, Councilmember Christopher Marte revealed that the rate of work is so demonstrative to the health of employees that a constituent, Daisy Castillo, passed away.
“She passed away in the past two weeks. She worked 24-hour shifts for over a decade. She’s the mother of two kids, and it’s sad. It’s not the first time,” Marte said.
Marte joined hundreds of protesters who in yet another push to pass Intro 175 (No More 24 Act), that would outlaw workers from being forced to spend long days and nights caring for others with no respite. In addition to being a principally female workforce, the home care attendants are also left silent due to English not being their first language. Marte charged that he believes the bill is being held back for financial reasons.
“We think there’s a lot of colluding with insurance companies and homecare agencies, you know, they’re trying to make it a budget fight. The money is there,” Marte told amNewYork Metro. “It’s something that, financially, can be done and so now we’re just hoping that the speaker can pay attention to these women and pass this bill.”
In a desperate attempt to have their voices heard, the group penned a petition to the United Nations, calling the everlasting shifts a humanitarian crisis and pleading that the organization step in. Although Speaker Adams previously stated that she is willing to have “an open dialogue,” regarding the 24-hour workday, those who have been pushing for the bill say she has not responded to their efforts. However, they hope with more eyes in their fight that the speaker will engage with their pleas.
Other proponents of the bill include New York State Representative Ron Kim who has voiced frustration over the suffering of home attendants for years now.
“New York City, the only place in America this is happening. It is insane that is happening here in our city. They’re making billions and billions of dollars off of the backs of our hard-working immigrant women workers and I say no,” Kim said.
Workers say they are not only forced to work these long hours, but they are also not paid overtime for the hours.
In a statement to amNewYork Metro, a Council spokesperson said Speaker Adams supports workers and that the Council is committed to meaningful solutions that advance protections for them.
“As both Health Committee Chairs of the State Legislature and countless advocates testified when this bill was first introduced, 24-hour home care shifts must be solved at the state level. The state controls Medicaid, and the regulatory and payment structures of homecare flow through State Medicaid, so state legislation is the way to address these problems,” the spokesperson said.
The rep also denounced protesters for inaccurately framing the issue.
“It is misleading and counterproductive to frame this issue as one that can be resolved at the city level, and deeply inappropriate to do so by lying about the Speaker’s position and encouraging the use of personal attacks and racially problematic language,” the spokesperson said. “To actually deliver for home care workers, and the patients they care for, our efforts should be focused at the state level, where these changes can be implemented. It’s perplexing why any government official, who knows this reality, would be acting otherwise.”
