It was Evelyn Coke?s first trip to the United States Supreme Court, and for the 73-year-old home-care aide from Corona, Queens, it was certainly eventful, the last step in a five-year battle. In a case in which Ms. Coke is the sole plaintiff, her lawyers sought to persuade the nine justices that she ? and the nation?s 1.4 million other home-care aides ? should not be exempt from federal minimum wage and overtime protections. But Ms. Coke has faced considerable resistance. The Bush and Bloomberg administrations oppose her lawsuit, arguing that government spending on home care for the elderly and infirm will soar if the Supreme Court rules that home-care aides are protected by minimum wage and overtime laws.
See "Day in Court for Queens Home-Care Aide", Steven Greenhouse, The New York Times, April 16, 2007