Washington State Adds Domestic Worker Protections

The Details

Washington has enacted legislation (House Bill 2355), which adds wage, contract and other protections for domestic workers. House Bill 2355 is effective July 1, 2027.

The law defines a domestic worker as an individual who works or provides services in one or more private residences as a nanny, childcare provider, home care worker, personal care provider, housekeeper or cleaner, cook, gardener or household manager.

Note: Domestic workers who are exempt from House Bill 2355 protections may be eligible for certain other protections against unfair practices. See the text of the law for further details.

A hiring entity includes an individual(s), partnership, association, corporation, business trust, employer, or any combination thereof, that provides payment to a domestic worker for work or services. 

Note: Hiring entity does not include state agencies or home care agencies that receive funds under the law.

Pay Requirements

Under the law (enforced as wage payments), a hiring entity must pay a domestic worker:

• At a rate that meets or exceeds the minimum hourly rate under the law; and
  
  
• Overtime at a rate that is not less than one and one-half times the worker's regular rate of pay for hours worked in excess of 40 hours in a workweek.

A hiring entity may withhold or divert any portion of a domestic worker's compensation, provided they document any withholdings in writing, and the withholding: 1) is for state or federal law purposes; or 2) was expressly authorized by the domestic worker in writing for a lawful purpose that leads to a benefit.

Note: The payment requirements do not apply where a domestic worker voluntarily provides additional home care in excess of a written agreement between only themselves and a family member to whom they are providing services.

A hiring entity cannot:

• Collect or receive from a domestic worker a rebate of any part of the compensation paid by the hiring entity to the domestic worker; or
  
  
• Willfully, with intent to deprive the domestic worker of any part of their compensation, pay them a lower rate of compensation than what is required by agreement or contract.

Written Agreements

A hiring entity must specify a domestic worker's terms for their position or services and their rate of pay in a written agreement.

The written agreement must:

• Include the following for the domestic worker (if applicable for the position or services or if provided by the hiring entity):
  
• Be in a language (or languages) understood by the worker and hiring entity.
  
• Be provided to a domestic worker by a hiring entity along with a disclosure of rights following a template of a model notice to be made available by the Washington Department of Labor and Industries (DOLI).
  

Termination of Position or Services

A hiring entity must provide at least two weeks' written notice before terminating a domestic worker's position or services (four weeks for a live-in domestic worker).

Note: A hiring entity that does not provide the required notification must provide severance pay of at least the domestic worker's standard rate of pay (the agreed-upon rate of pay in the written agreement) multiplied by the regular number of hours worked over the period during which the notification was not provided.

Exceptions

Written notification is not required in certain circumstances. See the text of the law for further details.

Harassment Prevention

A hiring entity cannot:

• Subject a domestic worker to conduct that creates an intimidating, hostile or offensive work environment with the purpose or effect of unreasonably interfering with the worker's performance;
  
• Require or request a domestic worker to allow the hiring entity to take or maintain possession of their personal effects, including, but not limited to: legal documents, forms of identification, passports or immigration documents;
  
• Monitor or record activities of a domestic worker using a bathroom, or in the worker's private living quarters, or while the worker performs personal activities associated with dressing or changing clothes;
  
• Monitor, record, or interfere with a domestic worker's private communications; or
  
• Request, direct or require, as a condition of work, that a domestic worker waive the worker's rights under federal, state or local law, or agree to:

Nonretaliation

A hiring entity cannot:

• Interfere with, restrain, or deny the exercise of a right under the law by using a domestic worker's exercise of the right as a negative factor in an employment action or other similar action.
• Take adverse action against a domestic worker for exercising or attempting to exercise a right under the law.

See the text of the law for examples of prohibited adverse actions.

Recordkeeping

A hiring entity must: 1) create and maintain records documenting hours worked, rate of pay, and, if applicable, the leave time earned and used; and 2) ensure the records and written agreement are ready and available to the DOLI in the event a complaint is filed.

See the text of the law for further details on the timing of when complaints may be filed, investigative procedures, and hiring-entity appeal processes.

Penalties

A hiring entity found to have violated the law may face a penalty of $1,000 for a willful violation of the law, and $2,000 to $20,000 for each repeated willful violation.

Next Steps

Washington employers that meet the definition of a hiring entity should review their policies, practices and training to ensure compliance with the changes by July 1, 2027. They should also monitor the DOLI website for the required notice template.