Occupational safety and health: definitions.

Existing law, the California Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1973, provides the Division of Occupational Safety and Health within the Department of Industrial Relations with the power, jurisdiction, and supervision over every employment and place of employment in this state which is necessary to enforce and administer all occupational health and safety laws and to protect employees. Existing law defines various terms for purposes of the act, including "employment," and for purposes of that term, the definition excludes household domestic service. Under specified circumstances, a violation of the act is a crime. Beginning July 1, 2025, this bill would delete the above-referenced exclusion and would, instead, expand the definition of "employment" to additionally include household domestic service performed on a permanent or temporary basis, except for specified household domestic service, including, among others, those where an individual who, in their own residence, privately employs persons to perform ordinary domestic household tasks, including housecleaning, cooking, and caregiving. By expanding the application of criminal penalties under the act to household domestic service employers, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.