PERB and IHSS: The Loophole Built to Protect Counties, Not Caregivers

How a “Right to Bargain” Was Engineered to Shield County Budgets While Keeping Caregivers Underpaid

The Illusion of Bargaining

We’ve been told we have the “right to bargain.” Sounds good on paper, right? In reality, it’s a loophole—a system designed to protect county budgets while caregivers get bent over again and again.

PERB—the Public Employment Relations Board—exists to make sure counties go through the motions. Show up to a meeting, make a token offer, drag it out for months or years. That’s all it takes to pass the “good faith” test. Counties don’t need to pay fair wages. They just need to keep the process alive long enough to check the box. This isn’t bargaining. It’s theater. And the counties know it.

The 35% Brake Pedal

Here’s the kicker: every dollar of IHSS wage/benefit increase, counties have to cover 35%. The state covers 65%. That’s the rule, written into law around 2000.

Sounds fair until you realize what it means in practice: counties have an automatic excuse to nickel-and-dime caregivers forever. They cry poor, PERB shrugs, and we’re stuck with pennies. The law is literally written to protect county budgets from the people who do the work.

How We Got Here: 1999 to Now

This system didn’t just happen—it was written. AB 1682 (1999) required every county to establish an “employer of record” for IHSS providers. By 2003, all 58 counties had either a public authority or a nonprofit consortium. On paper, this meant caregivers could bargain. In reality, it fractured us into county-by-county fights, each one locked into the same weak process.

• 1999 – AB 1682 signed, requiring counties to become employer of record.
• 2000–2001 – Funding formula set: 65% state, 35% county for wage/benefit increases.
• 2003 – All counties required to have a public authority or consortium in place.

Fact-Finding Is an Empty Ritual

When bargaining stalls, a neutral panel can issue recommendations. On paper, that looks like accountability. In real life? Counties can ignore it. All they have to do is publish it. “Publish” does not mean “pay.” So the process drags on, the county waves around a piece of paper, and caregivers stay broke.

Why the Law Was Never Written for Us

The Meyers-Milias-Brown Act (MMBA) governs IHSS bargaining, but it was designed for cops, firefighters, and city workers. Those workers have the right to strike and real leverage. Caregivers don’t. Applying the same rules to IHSS created a rigged mismatch:

• No right to strike—courts say it endangers clients.
• No binding arbitration—recommendations are advisory only.
• No cost-of-living requirement—counties can fall decades behind inflation.
• No retroactive pay—delays save counties money while caregivers eat the loss.

The Human Cost

While counties nickel-and-dime, caregivers are paying the price. Rent, food, gas, medicine—all going up while wages stagnate. We’re told to smile through it while carrying the weight of full-time care, day and night. Some caregivers work over 100 hours a week and still live in poverty. This isn’t just policy failure—it’s cruelty written into law.

AB 283: Hope or Just Another Delay?

Lawmakers are floating AB 283 (2025, Haney) to create statewide bargaining under the new IHSS Employer-Employee Relations Act (IHSSEERA). On paper, one table could mean less county shell-gaming and more consistency. But without teeth, statewide crumbs are still crumbs. Unless it includes wage floors, binding arbitration, and real timelines, it risks becoming another illusion of progress.

Close the Loophole—Now

Enough ceremony. This system will not magically produce living wages. We need law, not lip service:

• Binding outcomes when counties stall.
• Automatic cost-of-living floors tied to regional reality.
• Retroactive make-whole pay when negotiations drag.
• Single statewide table that ends county shell games.
• Transparency rules so the public sees when counties ignore fact-finding.

Until these protections are written into statute, counties will keep hiding behind process while caregivers go broke. This isn’t a misunderstanding—it’s a choice. It’s time to change the law and slam this loophole shut.