34% OF SURVEYED DOMESTIC WORKERS REPORT HAVING RECEIVED AT LEAST ONE COVID-19 VACCINE DOSE
9 out of 10 intend to receive the vaccine; only 28% of those who tried to get an appointment were successful
Domestic Workers COVID-19 Vaccine Access Update · April 2021
Source: La Alianza surveys, NDWA Labs
Released: April 9, 2021
Domestic workers are the nannies, homecare workers and house cleaners whose work is essential to our economy, and yet they are one of the most vulnerable and marginalized groups of workers. Even before COVID-19, domestic workers earned less than the average US worker, and were three times as likely to be living in poverty (source: Economic Policy Institute (2019), Domestic Workers Chartbook). La Alianza survey data of Spanish-speaking domestic workers shows how the pandemic has amplified the vulnerability of this workforce, who continue to face low wages, and high levels of unemployment and underemployment.
Since January 2021 NDWA Labs has regularly surveyed domestic workers regarding their access to the vaccine to prevent COVID-19 and their intent to receive the vaccine. We want to know if domestic workers who are eligible and willing to get vaccinated have access, and what barriers they face. This report shares findings from our latest survey in early-April.
Vaccine Access for U.S. Domestic Workers
We estimate that, as of April 4, 34% of surveyed domestic workers have received at least one dose of the vaccine. This is more than three times the share of vaccinated respondents compared to our last update of 10% as of March 7.
This share is now similar to that of the total US population, which was 33% as of April 6. However, it continues to be lower than the share of vaccinated people among people 18 years of age and older, which was 42% as of April 6. The latter is a closer comparison to our respondent sample, as 99.8% of respondents are 18 years of age or older. (Source: CDC COVID Data Tracker, COVID-19 Vaccinations in the United States, data updated as of Apr 06 2021 6:00 am ET; https://covid.cdc.gov/covid-data-tracker/#vaccinations)
Surveyed domestic workers intend to get the COVID-19 vaccine. 9 in 10 surveyed workers said they would probably/definitely get the vaccine if it were available to them today.
Domestic workers need information about the vaccine rollout and their eligibility. The majority of surveyed domestic workers (53%) do NOT know if they are currently eligible, and 84% do NOT know when they will be eligible.
Domestic workers are struggling to get vaccine appointments.
28% of surveyed domestic workers who have tried to secure an appointment have been successful.
This is more than twice the share of respondents who were successful getting appointments compared to our last update of 12% of respondents as of March 7.
The majority (58%) of surveyed domestic workers who have tried to get an appointment found the process somewhat/very difficult.
Despite the inequities in the vaccine rollout, and domestic workers’ difficulty obtaining vaccine appointments, many domestic worker employers are conditioning employment on vaccination.
45% of respondents have been asked if they have been vaccinated against COVID-19 by their employers or prospective employers.
43% of those respondents said having the vaccine was a requirement to go to work or to continue working.
About the surveys
La Alianza surveys Spanish-speaking domestic workers each week, via a Messenger chatbot. The total number of respondents who fully completed the most recent survey in early-April was 1,399. At the end of each survey, La Alianza provides respondents each week with relevant news articles and resources in Spanish. At the end of each survey, La Alianza provides respondents each week with relevant news articles and resources in Spanish. To learn more about the La Alianza survey of Spanish-speaking domestic workers see our recent report.
La Alianza is a product of NDWA Labs, the innovation arm of the National Domestic Workers Alliance. NDWA Labs experiments with the ways technology can organize domestic workers and transform domestic work jobs into good jobs by bringing respect, living wages, and benefits to an undervalued and vulnerable part of the economy.
For questions, please contact us here.