Domestic Workers Bill Passes in Montgomery

A countywide survey, commissioned by the council, of about 300 domestic workers found that they have limited access to information about their rights. Just over half said they were paid less than Maryland's $6.15-an-hour minimum wage, and 75 percent said they did not receive overtime pay.

"We've worked hard for the protection and our rights," said Carmen Oliva, a former domestic worker from Peru who lives in Montgomery Village.

The bill was amended yesterday to exclude companions to elderly and disabled residents unless employed by an outside agency. In the case of an agency employee, a contract would be negotiated between the worker and the company, not the individual resident.

Changes to the bill came in part because members of Montgomery's Commission on Aging feared that it might discourage workers, particularly new immigrants, from seeking employment.

"Such prospective employees may well be wary of formal contractual relationships and unwilling to accept a position that requires a written contract," Irwin Goldbloom, chairman of the commission, wrote in a letter to the council.

Under the bill, employers would be required to offer to negotiate a written contract and to provide notice of the worker's rights under state law. If a worker declined to sign a contract, the employer would be required to obtain a written statement that a contract was offered and declined.

Berliner, who suggested the waiver, said it would prevent residents and workers who are comfortable with an "informal relationship" from being forced into "the inflexibility of a contractual relationship."

Advocates for domestic workers had initially pressed for mandatory paid vacation, health insurance and a minimum wage of $10.50 an hour. But the bill passed yesterday does not set such conditions, with the exception of the sleeping arrangements for certain live-in workers.

Some residents, such as Trudi Benford of Takoma Park, have long provided contracts for in-home help to prevent misunderstandings. Benford just signed her fourth six-page contract with her live-in nanny. In addition to pay and benefits, the contract includes monthly meetings and expectations for how the nanny maintains her basement apartment, such as keeping the dishes washed.

"The contract is like a bible that sort of guides us through the year," said Benford, who has twin 3-year-olds. "If you're going to hire a nanny, you need to treat them as professionals."

County officials said that they did not know how many workers would be covered by the measure but that they think it is the first in the country to require contract negotiations between domestic workers and individual employers.

A law enacted two years ago in Nassau County, N.Y., requires that agencies serving as clearinghouses for domestic workers provide employees with a "bill of rights" that puts working conditions in writing. New York City enacted a similar law in 2003.