OLYMPIA – Today, the House took a step toward addressing historic inequities and ensuring dignity, safety and fairness for workers whose labor allows families to work, children to thrive, and elders to age with dignity.
Deemed the ‘Domestic Workers Bill of Rights,’ House Bill 2355, sponsored by Rep. Brianna Thomas (D – West Seattle), ensures clear, enforceable protections for people who work as house cleaners, nannies, personal cooks, gardeners, or do other domestic labor. It defines a domestic worker as anyone paid for four or more hours of domestic work in a private home each month. This includes nannies, child care providers, home or personal care workers, housekeepers, cooks, gardeners and household managers, whether they are hourly employees, salaried workers, or independent contractors.
“Many of us have heard stories from domestic workers in Washington who have been abused, have worked without pay, and been taken advantage of because of their status, a language barrier, or economic vulnerabilities,” said Thomas. “We rely on these workers – our friends and neighbors – to take care of our homes, our children and our elderly. This bill helps us take care of them.”
The Domestic Workers Bill of Rights would:
- Guarantee minimum wage and overtime pay
- Require written agreements and a notice of rights
- Require advance notice of termination — two weeks for most workers and four weeks for live-in workers
- Prohibit hostile work environments, harassment and retaliation
- Ban confiscation of personal documents and personal effects
- Prohibit invasive surveillance and monitoring in private spaces
- Prohibit forced arbitration, nondisclosure and noncompete agreements
- Create administrative remedies and civil causes of action for violations
- Establish civil rights protections by making it an unfair practice to discriminate in pay or termination based on a protected class under the Washington Law Against Discrimination
HB 2355 passed out of the House 57-39. It now moves on to the Senate for consideration. The last day of the regular session in March 12.