Full Citation
Title: Profile of San Francisco Domestic Workers
Citation Type: Miscellaneous
Publication Year: 2020
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Abstract: Domestic workers are integral to the social and economic fabric of San Francisco, providing childcare to working families, cleaning and maintaining homes, and supporting older adults and people with disabilities in their everyday activities. This report, based on an ongoing study, outlines the demographic composition and employment conditions of this workforce. The analysis draws upon U.S. Census Bureau data, Bureau of Labor Statistics data, and an original survey of over 200 domestic workers employed in San Francisco.1 Approximately 10,000 home attendants, nannies, and housecleaners work in San Francisco, excluding individuals employed through the state’s In-Home Supportive Services (IHSS) Program and other publicly funded programs.2 This report focuses on the first group—domestic workers employed by private households or private agencies. Unlike IHSS providers, these workers often lack collective bargaining rights, rendering public policy especially crucial in shaping their employment outcomes. The inadequacy of employment conditions in this field poses serious challenges, both during the COVID-19 crisis and in the face of longterm economic trends. Amid the pandemic, low wages and weak labor protections leave domestic workers acutely vulnerable to both illness and economic hardship. This vulnerability is worsened by informal employment arrangements that often leave workers without access to employee benefits and social safety net programs, such as paid sick leave and time off, unemployment insurance, and paid family leave. Workers who patch together employment across multiple households—especially common among housecleaners—experience further insecurity. Beyond the pandemic, these realities perpetuate racial and gender inequality, as the low wages and poor conditions in this field fall upon a workforce predominated by immigrant women of color. Workers and their families are not the only ones affected: households who rely on domestic workers also suffer, as the dearth of good jobs contributes to high worker turnover and mounting labor shortages. While greater public investment from the state and federal government will be critical in reversing these trends, the City and County of San Francisco should consider a range of immediate policies to advance change in this sector.
Url: https://academicworks.cuny.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1799&context=gc_pubs
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Authors: Jabola-Carolus, Isaac
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Data Collections: IPUMS USA, IPUMS CPS
Topics: Labor Force and Occupational Structure
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