Home health care workers holding sign 'care is essential. Virginia lawmakers approved a similar bill last year to let the home health care workers unionize, but then-Gov. One is that most of Virginia’s home health care workers are women of color, as is the case nationwide. “I’ve been a home care worker for more than 30 years, and I’m here because this work—and the people we care for—deserve dignity,” home care worker Joy Barnes told the press conference. The home health care workers “are the backbone of the health care industry,” and let other people go to work, rather than staying home to provide unpaid care.