(a) Administrator means the Administrator of the Wage and Hour Division, U.S. Department of Labor, or the Administrator's authorized representative.

(b) Act means the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, as amended.

(a) This part provides necessary rules for the application of the Act to domestic service employment in accordance with the following amendments made by the Fair Labor Standards Amendments of 1974, 88 Stat. 55, et seq.

(b) Section 2(a) of the Act finds that the “employment of persons in domestic service in households affects commerce.” Section 6(f) extends the minimum wage protection under section 6(b) to employees employed as domestic service employees under either of the following circumstances:

(1) If the employee's compensation for such services from his/her employer would constitute wages under section 209(a)(6) of title II of the Social Security Act, that is, if the cash remuneration during a calendar year is not less than $1,000 in 1995, or the amount designated for subsequent years pursuant to the adjustment provision in section 3121(x) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986; or

(2) If the employee was employed in such domestic service work by one or more employers for more than 8 hours in the aggregate in any workweek.

(c) The definitions required by section 13(a)(15) are contained in §§ 552.3, 552.4, 552.5 and 552.6.

The term domestic service employment means services of a household nature performed by an employee in or about a private home (permanent or temporary). The term includes services performed by employees such as companions, babysitters, cooks, waiters, butlers, valets, maids, housekeepers, nannies, nurses, janitors, laundresses, caretakers, handymen, gardeners, home health aides, personal care aides, and chauffeurs of automobiles for family use. This listing is illustrative and not exhaustive.

As used in section 13(a)(15) of the Act, the term babysitting services shall mean the custodial care and protection, during any part of the 24-hour day, of infants or children in or about the private home in which the infants or young children reside. The term “babysitting services” does not include services relating to the care and protection of infants or children which are performed by trained personnel, such as registered, vocational, or practical nurses. While such trained personnel do not qualify as babysitters, this fact does not remove them from the category of a covered domestic service employee when employed in or about a private household.

As used in section 13(a)(15) of the Act, the term casual basis, when applied to babysitting services, shall mean employment which is irregular or intermittent, and which is not performed by an individual whose vocation is babysitting. Casual babysitting services may include the performance of some household work not related to caring for the children: Provided, however, That such work is incidental, i.e., does not exceed 20 percent of the total hours worked on the particular babysitting assignment.

(a) As used in section 13(a)(15) of the Act, the term companionship services means the provision of fellowship and protection for an elderly person or person with an illness, injury, or disability who requires assistance in caring for himself or herself. The provision of fellowship means to engage the person in social, physical, and mental activities, such as conversation, reading, games, crafts, or accompanying the person on walks, on errands, to appointments, or to social events. The provision of protection means to be present with the person in his or her home or to accompany the person when outside of the home to monitor the person's safety and well-being.

(b) The term companionship services also includes the provision of care if the care is provided attendant to and in conjunction with the provision of fellowship and protection and if it does not exceed 20 percent of the total hours worked per person and per workweek. The provision of care means to assist the person with activities of daily living (such as dressing, grooming, feeding, bathing, toileting, and transferring) and instrumental activities of daily living, which are tasks that enable a person to live independently at home (such as meal preparation, driving, light housework, managing finances, assistance with the physical taking of medications, and arranging medical care).

(c) The term companionship services does not include domestic services performed primarily for the benefit of other members of the household.

(d) The term companionship services does not include the performance of medically related services provided for the person. The determination of whether services are medically related is based on whether the services typically require and are performed by trained personnel, such as registered nurses, licensed practical nurses, or certified nursing assistants; the determination is not based on the actual training or occupational title of the individual performing the services.