Au Pair in Massachusetts Are Treated as Domestic Worker, and Protected as Such

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ate Taylor, Families Protest Pay Ruling in Favor of Au Pairs; Raise to minimum wage is a big boost for child care costs. New York Times, Jan 9, 2019.
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/01/ ... husetts-ruling.html
("Massachusetts Domestic Workers Bill of Rights, passed in 2014")

Quote:

(a) "Under a federal program administered by the State Department, au pairs are paid a stipend of roughly $195 per week, in addition to receiving roonm and board. Host familiers also must pay up to $500 a year toward an au pair's academic work.

(b) "The First Circuit decision appears likely to have an impact in Massachusetts, in other states [within the First Circuit's jurisdiction, which are Maine, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Puerto Rico] that, without explicitly exempting au pairs, offer protection p domestic workers greater than those of federal au pair regulations.

"The minimum wage in Massachusetts, $12.75 per hour, means that families who employ au pairs have to pay them roughly $28 a week for 45 hours of work, when factoring in overtime and a $77 deduction for room and board.

(c) "Several parents said the ruling fundamentally misconstrued the nature of the au pair program, which was designed as a culturla exchange, allowing young people to poursue their education while experiencing everyday life in an American family.

"Au pair means 'on par' in French, and the State Department's online information about the [au pair] program [that department runs] says au pair should be included 'whenever possible in family meals, outings, holidays and other events.'

"And in a brief filed with the court, the federal government argues against applying the Massachusetts law to au pairs.

" 'State and local regulations have the potential to severely undermine the au pair program, particularly of increased costs or record-keeping burdens discourage participation by host families,' the brief said, describing the program ias 'a valuable tool of US foreign policy.'

(d) "Massachusetts is the fifth-most popular destination for au pairs, with 1,530 new au pairs arriving in 2018, according to data from the State Department, which administers the program.

Note:
(a) There is no need to read the rest.
(b) Capron v Office of Attorney General of Massachustts (Dec 2, 2019) _F.3d _.
https://scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=6582329804318315244

Read only the first part to know what it is about.

The above opinion has been corrected in minor points. See Errata Sheet.
https://scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=2424472173293411259