Min. Wage Extended To Direct Care Workers

For some strange reason, direct care workers have not been covered by the minimum wage protections. But last Tuesday, the Department of Labor announced that they will be extending minimum wage and overtime protections to those workers. Secretary of Labor Thomas E Perez said:

"Many American families rely on the vital services provided by direct care workers. Because of their hard work, countless Americans are able to live independently, go to work and participate more fully in their communities. Today we are taking an important step toward guaranteeing that these professionals receive the wage protections they deserve while protecting the right of individuals to live at home."

And Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius added:

"Direct care workers play a critical role in ensuring access to high-quality home care that many people need in order to remain healthy and independent in their communities, and they should be compensated fairly for this important work. We will continue to engage with consumers, states, advocates and home care providers in the implementation of this rule to help people with disabilities, older adults and their families receive quality, person-centered services."

It's about time this happened. No worker, in any field, should be paid less than the minimum wage (or not be justly rewarded for working overtime). I do see a couple of problems with this though:
1. It won't go into effect for more than a year (January 1, 2015).
2. The minimum wage is still not a livable wage.

Number 2 needs to be fixed as quickly as possible.