Starting July 1, Janitorial Employers Must Register With Labor Commissioner

Janitorial employers must also keep additional detailed records for three years.
Janitorial employers must also keep additional detailed records for three years.

Beginning July 1, 2018, all covered janitorial employers must register annually with the Labor Commissioner. A covered employer provides janitorial services with at least one employee and one janitor. A janitor includes any employee, independent contract or franchisee predominantly working as a janitor.

The Labor Commissioner’s Office has recently launched an online registration system and urges janitorial employers to register quickly. If an employer fails to register by October 1, 2018, the employer may be subject to a civil fine, as will any person or entity who contracts with a janitorial employer lacking valid registration.

Employers can register online or by mail and pay a $500 nonrefundable application fee. The registration is valid for one year and must be renewed annually by the month and day of the original registration’s issuance. The renewal fee is $500. The Labor Commissioner’s Office has posted a list of Janitorial Registration FAQs.

“The online registration tool will make it easy for janitorial employers to comply with the law, and will help us to hold accountable businesses in the underground economy that underpay their workers and evade labor laws,” said Labor Commissioner Julie A, Su, in a press release. “The registration requirement is another tool for property owners to distinguish law-abiding contractors from wage thieves and to protect honest businesses from unfair competition.”

The Labor Commissioner’s Office has posted a registration search tool that shows whether employers and contractors are properly registered. Employers or anyone who contracts with a janitorial employer should use the search tool to make sure their contractors are properly registered.

Governor Brown signed the Property Service Workers Protection Act in 2016. Beginning January 1, 2019, janitorial employers will also be required to provide employees with sexual harassment prevention training once every two years. The Division of Labor Standards Enforcement must develop this biennial, in-person sexual violence and harassment prevention training by January 1, 2019.

Katie Culliton, Editor

CalChamber members can read more about Requirements for Janitorial Workers in the HR Library. Not a member? See how CalChamber can help you.

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