Philadelphia, PA – Pennsylvania Department of Labor & Industry (L&I) Secretary Nancy A. Walker – along with leaders from the Pennsylvania Departments of Human Services (DHS), and Aging, SEIU Healthcare Pennsylvania, labor partners, worker advocates, and home care workers – today announced the launch of Standing Up for Home Care Workers, a strategic labor law enforcement initiative to protect home care workers’ wages and ensure home care agencies and other third-party employers comply with Pennsylvania law.
Led by L&I and carried out by its Bureau of Labor Law Compliance (BLLC), the initiative will use proactive investigations, outreach, and partnerships to focus enforcement in an industry where workers are particularly vulnerable to wage violations and where complaints are substantial.
“Home care workers take care of our Pennsylvania families. They help seniors and people with disabilities live safely, independently, and with dignity in their own homes,” said Secretary Walker. “These workers are entitled to receive the wages they are owed for hours worked. Through Standing Up for Home Care Workers, the Shapiro Administration is putting our enforcement resources where they are needed and using the tools available under Pennsylvania law to make sure workers are paid for all the time they work and employers are held accountable when they fail to follow the law.”
Most labor law investigations begin when a worker files a complaint. Our approach in this initiative is different. Through collaboration with our partners, we have launched proactive investigations into several home care agencies to identify and remedy wage-related violations. Beginning today, BLLC is sending notices to home care agencies to launch investigations into potential wage-related violations. Those investigations will examine whether covered workers are receiving the wages they are owed for all hours worked, including overtime when required by law.
Roughly 40 percent of Minimum Wage Act complaints in Pennsylvania come from home care workers. These complaints represent only a small fraction of worker exploitation in this industry, making it a priority for state wage enforcement. Minimum Wage Act complaints often involve unpaid overtime, unpaid hours worked, improper overtime calculations, inaccurate records, or other pay practices that prevent workers from receiving the wages they are owed.
Under Pennsylvania law, most home care workers employed by third-party agencies are protected by state minimum wage and overtime law. Covered workers must be paid at least the minimum wage for all hours worked and overtime when they work more than 40 hours a week.
This initiative builds on the Shapiro Administration’s ongoing work to protect Pennsylvania’s home care workforce. One year ago today, L&I led a multistate coalition opposing a federal proposal to roll back minimum wage and overtime protections for home care workers. Pennsylvania made clear at the time that most home care workers employed by third-party agencies remain protected under Pennsylvania’s minimum wage and overtime law. Standing Up for Home Care Workers takes the next step by pairing those protections with proactive state enforcement.
As part of the initiative, BLLC will investigate home care agencies operating across Pennsylvania, with the investigations covering agencies that collectively employ an estimated nearly 100,000 Pennsylvania home care workers. L&I will continue working with state agency partners, labor organizations, worker advocates, care recipients, and community organizations to identify potential violations, support workers, and help employers understand their responsibilities under Pennsylvania law.
"Home care workers help nearly 200,000 older adults and people with intellectual and physical disabilities receive disability services in their homes and make it possible for Pennsylvanians to live, work, and participate in the communities of their choosing. They provide people with the dignity and independence they deserve so they can live an everyday life, and Governor Shapiro's recent investments have been critical in raising rates and sustaining higher wages for these workers throughout Pennsylvania,” said PA DHS Deputy Secretary for the Office of Long-Term Living Juliet Marsala, But these investments are just one piece – we also need to make sure that the investments are going to the people they’re meant for. These workers deserve to be treated with dignity and compensated fairly for their work, which is why we are proud to stand up for home care workers alongside the Department of Labor & Industry today."
“Older adults are choosing to age in their homes and communities. Making that possible depends on having a strong, stable, and respected home care workforce. When families cannot find a home care worker, older adults may go without the help they deserve with everyday tasks we can do and take for granted. Family caregivers are forced to leave work or take on additional responsibilities. And too often, people end up in more restrictive and more expensive settings not because it is what they want, but because the workforce simply is not there,” said Secretary of Aging Jason Kavulich. “Hardworking professionals who dedicate themselves to caring for others deserve to be treated fairly and paid properly for every hour they work. That is not only the law, it is fundamental to building a workforce that people want to join and remain a part of.”
Home care is a crucial part of Pennsylvania’s care system. Home care workers help seniors and people with disabilities with daily needs that allow them to remain safely and independently in their homes and communities. As demand for home- and community-based services continues to grow, Pennsylvania needs a stable, respected, and fairly paid home care workforce.
"Caregivers shouldn't have to become wage-and-hour experts just to get paid correctly, and the burden shouldn't fall on one worker to catch a violation, confront an employer, and hope someone listens," said Matt Yarnell, SEIU Healthcare Pennsylvania president. "The PA Department of Labor & Industry's Standing Up for Home Care Workers initiative is an important step forward in identifying problems across the industry, holding bad actors accountable, and raising standards for the workers and people who depend on their care. It sends a clear sign to employers: if you're profiting from home care in PA, you have a responsibility to follow the law."
When home care workers are not paid properly, the impact extends beyond an individual paycheck. It can contribute to workforce instability and turnover, affect families and care recipients who depend on consistent care, and put responsible employers that follow Pennsylvania’s labor laws at a competitive disadvantage.
"I've been a home care worker for 20 years. For the first 15 of those years, I did this work without a union behind me. I didn't get overtime or training. And I most definitely did not have the support and solidarity that I have today," said Wanda Carroll-Russell, a United Home Care Workers of Pennsylvania member. "I'm proud to be here today standing with L&I as they begin this investigation. There are so many caregivers out there without the support of a union, and this shows that we can help protect our most vulnerable by protecting the home care workers who take care of them."
Know Your Rights
As part of Standing Up for Home Care Workers, L&I has developed new compliance assistance specifically for the home care industry, including plain-language Know Your Rights guidance and a Fact Sheet for workers and employers.
Home care workers can visit L&I’s website to learn more about their rights and file a complaint with the Bureau of Labor Law Compliance. L&Iand community partners are available to help workers understand their rights and options.
L&I’s Bureau of Labor Law Compliance administers and enforces Pennsylvania labor laws, including the Minimum Wage Act and Wage Payment and Collection Law. BLLC investigates potential violations, recovers wages owed to workers, conducts compliance outreach and education, and holds employers accountable when they violate Pennsylvania law.
For more information on the Pennsylvania Department of Labor & Industry, please visit the website or follow L&I on Instagram, Facebook, X, and LinkedIn.
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