PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- A bill to allow about 660 licensed home-based childcare providers to unionize cleared the Senate Labor Committee Tuesday evening and now heads to the Senate floor.
The vote was 5-to-1, with Sen. Dawson T. Hodgson, the sole Republican on the committee, voting no. Four other committee members were absent for the vote.
Sponsored by Sen. Maryellen Goodwin, the measure extends union rights to providers who receive state subsidies to care for children from low-income families. In 2011, the subsidies ranged from $49 to $188 per week, depending on the age of the child.
The Senate bill (S-794 Sub A) was amended to match the House version (H-596 Sub A) passed by a 56-to-11 vote which stipulates that besides not being eligible for state pensions, these child-care providers also would not be eligible for state employee health benefits.
The bill also names the state Department of Administration or his designee as the lead negotiator of their agreements, rather than the governor.
Back in 2005, the General Assembly approved a similar bill that would have required the state to negotiate with home daycare providers, but then-Gov. Donald Carcieri vetoed it, calling it the "Trojan horse of the effort by organized labor to swell its ranks in the public sector."