Domestic Workers Bill Passes in Montgomery (MD)

Montgomery County residents who employ nannies, housekeepers or cooks for at least 20 hours a week would be required to offer workers a written contract that spells out job conditions such as wages and benefits, under legislation passed yesterday that county officials said might be the first of its kind in the nation.

In most cases, residents would have to provide live-in help with a separate room, with a lock, for sleeping and "reasonable access" to a bathroom, kitchen and laundry room. The bill, approved unanimously by the County Council, would cover in-home domestic workers whose employment lasts at least 30 days.

The measure does not cover the hiring of nurses, child-care workers from overseas who are classified as au pairs or self-employed companions to elderly and disabled individuals.

Montgomery's Office of Consumer Protection would enforce the measure and could fine violators as much as $1,000.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/07/15/AR2008071501653.html