(New York Times) — Patricia Francois prowled the American Museum of Natural History on a recent afternoon, looking for nannies. She spotted two, with their charges, sitting in the inky gloaming beneath the famous blue whale, and zeroed in. Ms. Francois, an organizer for the advocacy group Domestic Workers United, asked the women if they were familiar with the state’s new Domestic Workers’ Bill of Rights, better known as the “nanny law.” The two nannies, both from the West Indies, shook their heads. “We have to stick together,” urged Ms. Francois, a Trinidadian, handing them pamphlets describing the measure. “What we have is people power.” More than seven months after the bill was signed into law with some fanfare, most domestic workers and their employers seem unaware of it, and its impact on the often-fluid business arrangements between the two groups appears to have been negligible, say nannies, labor advocates, state officials and others. The law is the only one in the nation to offer specific protections for domestic workers, including nannies, housekeepers and caregivers for the elderly. The result of years of ardent advocacy and political wrangling, it allows temporary disability benefits for full-time home workers, and provides redress for workplace sexual harassment and discrimination.
