AB 283 (Haney) — IHSSEERA in Plain English AB 283, also called the In-Home Supportive Services Employer-Employee Relations Act (IHSSEERA), is a bill that would change how IHSS collective bargaining works in California. Right now, wages and benefits are negotiated...
On paper, California’s In-Home Supportive Services (IHSS) program looks like one of the most compassionate in the country. It allows older adults and disabled residents to remain at home, saves counties millions each year, and employs more than 500,000 caregivers statewide. But peel back the layers, and you’ll find a system designed to keep caregivers poor today and destitute tomorrow. We don’t get employer health insurance. We don’t build Social Security credits if we live with our recipient. And our paychecks — with zero deductions across the board — show that IHSS was built not to protect caregivers, but to save the state money at our expense.
We’ve been told we have the “right to bargain,” but in IHSS that right is an illusion. Counties go through the motions, drag out negotiations, and PERB calls it “good faith.” The real brake is money: counties must pay 35% of every raise, so they stall and plead poverty. This setup dates back to AB 1682 in 1999, which forced every county to become the employer of record and locked caregivers into fractured fights across 58 counties. Fact-finding adds another layer of theater—counties can ignore recommendations and caregivers stay broke. Unlike police or firefighters, IHSS workers can’t strike, don’t get binding arbitration, and lose ground every year without cost-of-living protections. The system was never written for us, and the human cost shows in constant poverty and instability.
You sit in county negotiations and explain how rent, food, gas, and medical bills keep climbing while IHSS wages fall further behind. The county listens, delays, and offers pennies that don’t cover the basics. So who protects your paycheck? The answer is PERB—the Public Employment Relations Board. But PERB doesn’t guarantee fairness or a living wage. It only polices the process of bargaining, not the outcomes. As long as counties keep “moving,” even a little, they pass the good-faith test. Fact-finding is non-binding, recommendations can be ignored, and caregivers end up stuck with wages that lag years behind the cost of living. That’s why the system feels rigged: it was never built to ensure stability or justice for caregivers.
In recent months, IHSS caregivers in Santa Barbara County have stepped forward to demand wages that reflect the vital care they provide. With nearly 4,800 participants—more than the county’s own workforce—the issue has become central in local labor negotiations. On August 26, 2025, caregivers testified before the Board of Supervisors in Santa Maria, urging rejection of budget cuts and calling for wages to rise to $22 per hour to match neighboring counties and the high cost of living. Board Chair Laura Capps praised their dedication but noted the limits of ongoing negotiations. Local media amplified the campaign, pointing to pay gaps that leave Santa Barbara’s caregivers earning around $18.67 an hour—less than Ventura and other counties—while living costs here remain among the highest in California.
IHSS is more than a paycheck. It’s a lifeline for over half a million Californians — older adults, people with disabilities, and families — to live at home with dignity. For caregivers, it’s both work and a calling. For recipients, it’s the difference between independence and institutional care. IHSS is also a community: a network of people sharing struggles, victories, and the belief that compassionate care matters. Though often invisible to the wider public, caregiving holds enormous social value.
AB 283, also called the In-Home Supportive Services Employer-Employee Relations Act (IHSSEERA), would shift IHSS bargaining from 58 separate counties to the state level. The State becomes the “employer of record” for wages and benefits, but consumer-directed care stays the same — recipients still hire, fire, and supervise their caregivers. A single statewide contract would replace county patchwork, while allowing local add-ons for unique needs. The bill also creates a structured dispute process, removes county budget excuses, and ensures counties aren’t penalized financially. Most importantly, it strengthens caregiver bargaining power while protecting recipient independence.
On paper, California’s In-Home Supportive Services (IHSS) program looks like one of the most compassionate in the country. It allows older adults and disabled residents to remain at home, saves counties millions each year, and employs more than 500,000 caregivers statewide. But peel back the layers, and you’ll find a system designed to keep caregivers poor today and destitute tomorrow. We don’t get employer health insurance. We don’t build Social Security credits if we live with our recipient. And our paychecks — with zero deductions across the board — show that IHSS was built not to protect caregivers, but to save the state money at our expense.
For more than two decades, IHSS wages have been set county by county, leaving workers in one county earning $22 an hour while others just across the border make $16.50. Rising housing, food, and gas costs add to the strain, causing turnover and shortages that leave vulnerable people without reliable care. AB 283 (Haney, 2025) would change this by moving bargaining to the state level, creating one statewide authority so caregivers and their unions can negotiate directly with Sacramento instead of fighting 58 separate battles. Counties would no longer be able to stall over costs, removing one of the biggest barriers to fair wages.
We’ve been told we have the “right to bargain,” but in IHSS that right is an illusion. Counties go through the motions, drag out negotiations, and PERB calls it “good faith.” The real brake is money: counties must pay 35% of every raise, so they stall and plead poverty. This setup dates back to AB 1682 in 1999, which forced every county to become the employer of record and locked caregivers into fractured fights across 58 counties. Fact-finding adds another layer of theater—counties can ignore recommendations and caregivers stay broke. Unlike police or firefighters, IHSS workers can’t strike, don’t get binding arbitration, and lose ground every year without cost-of-living protections. The system was never written for us, and the human cost shows in constant poverty and instability.
You sit in county negotiations and explain how rent, food, gas, and medical bills keep climbing while IHSS wages fall further behind. The county listens, delays, and offers pennies that don’t cover the basics. So who protects your paycheck? The answer is PERB—the Public Employment Relations Board. But PERB doesn’t guarantee fairness or a living wage. It only polices the process of bargaining, not the outcomes. As long as counties keep “moving,” even a little, they pass the good-faith test. Fact-finding is non-binding, recommendations can be ignored, and caregivers end up stuck with wages that lag years behind the cost of living. That’s why the system feels rigged: it was never built to ensure stability or justice for caregivers.
