Domestic and Healthcare Workers
Domestic workers are people employed in private households to perform tasks such as cleaning, cooking, childcare, eldercare, gardening, and household maintenance. They may work full-time, part-time, live-in, or on a temporary basis, and their duties vary. This type of work is often historically undervalued, leaving many workers with limited labor protections, variable pay, and vulnerability to exploitation.
Healthcare workers are professionals who provide medical care, support, and services to maintain and improve patient health. They include clinicians such as physicians, nurses, and physician assistants; allied health professionals like laboratory technicians, radiographers, and respiratory therapists; and support staff including medical assistants, administrative personnel, and home health aides. They often work in hospitals, clinics, long-term care facilities, and community settings and their roles are essential for delivering safe, effective, and timely healthcare across the continuum of care.
Both domestic workers and healthcare workers make up a large portion of working families in the Naugatuck Valley Region and beyond. Their success and stability is foundational to a healthy community.
NVP engages in coalition work on behalf of our regions working people, standing in solidarity with them as they build power and fight for protections.
We have worked alongside domestic workers in asking our elected leaders for the passage of laws supporting their rights, and have stood in solidarity with union members on the picket line.
What we’ve accomplished together:
In 2021, NVP played a critical role in the state of Connecticut adopting Minimum Wage, Overtime, and the Right to a Written Contract for Workers of the Home, requiring that employers pay overtime for hours worked beyond the standard workweek, provide wages on a regular schedule, and give domestic workers a written contract outlining their terms of employment.
In 2024, we united domestic workers across the Greater Naugatuck Valley Region to lobby for paid sick leave. Connecticut's expanded Paid Sick Leave Law covers domestic workers through a phased-in approach based on company size. The bill was passed in 2024 and on January 1, 2027, it will reach its final phase… applying to all private-sector employers with 1 or more employees, granting paid sick leave to domestic workers, per-diem workers, and temporary help.
In 2025, we successfully lobbied the Connecticut legislature to pass a bill increasing state funding for grants to educate and train domestic workers (like housekeepers, nannies, and home care aides) about their legal labor and wage rights.
Throughout the past year, we’ve conducted workshops on:
Knowing Your Rights
Migration
Paid Sick Days
Health and Safety
Just look at the photos below to see our community in action!
Fighting together for Domestic Workers at our State Capitol in 2025
Fighting together to pass State Bill 1428 (We won!)
Fighting together for Funding for the Domestic Workers Education Program (Governor Ned Lamont)
First Latin Community Fair, September 2025, (Organized by Waterbury City Hall)
Knocking on doors in Meriden, CT, "CT For All", November 2025
Coming together to speak with our legislators (Representative Ron Napoli, Jr. and Digiovancarlo) about the problems in the city of Waterbury
Annual ANTH Health and Safety Conference, October 2025
Leaders and members of NVP at the Hartford Capitol, November 2025