Opinion: Hiring someone for jobs around the house?

Households in Washington that hire caregivers or cleaners will have to keep records, offer contracts, and follow new compliance rules under HB 2355.

Elizabeth New shares legal advice from Davis Wright Tremaine, a business law firm

Elizabeth New
Washington Policy Center

I appreciated this information about Washington state’s new domestic workers’ law from Davis Wright Tremaine (DWT), a business law firm. It details what households should know and need to do when House Bill 2355 is implemented in 2027. “Beginning July 1, 2027, any environment where a nanny, caregiver, housekeeper, cook, gardener, or household manager works is treated as a regulated workplace with enforceable standards,” writes DWT.

Elizabeth New (Hovde), Washington Policy Center

Supporters say the law is meant to protect domestic workers in our state from wage theft, a lack of clarity about expectations or bad employers, which is totally reasonable. What isn’t reasonable is how the law is written. It makes voluntary exchanges for household work between independent contractors and those who hire them formal arrangements with enforceable standards. As few as four hours of monthly work means the person doing the hiring needs to provide the worker with a written contract, minimum wage and overtime pay when applicable. The hiring entity also needs to keep payroll records, track sick leave that’s attached to domestic workers and provide a termination notice.

Tax obligations and a new paper trail could complicate things for both parties, and penalties for employers who don’t comply are real. Exemptions for “casual workers” are all too vague and will be decided by state agencies and courts as we go along — that is if what we think of as “casual workers” are still hired. A lot of “hiring entities” will now be turning to agencies for house or yard work, child or elder care. Sigh. Voluntary work arrangements that have provided a lot of Washingtonians with flexibility that benefits both workers and those paying them will be deterred.

Check out, “Five things every Washington household and domestic staffing business must know: Your home may now be a workplace.” It concludes this way: “Washington’s new Domestic Workers Bill of Rights is a wake‑up call for every employer — business or household — who relies on in‑home labor. … The home may be private — but starting in 2027, your compliance obligations definitely aren’t.”

Elizabeth New is the director of the Centers for Health Care and Worker Rights at the Washington Policy Center. She is a Clark County resident.