Hire a Worker

The Laguna Day Worker Center connects residents and businesses with local workers for moving, gardening, landscaping, construction, plumbing, demolition, and general labor. Hiring through the center is one of the most direct ways to support your neighbors: you get reliable help, and the workers get paid work on fair terms they helped set.

Fill out the form below with the details of your job. We will follow up within 24 hours.

First name

Last name

Phone

Communication and Response Time Disclaimer:

Upon submission of this form, we will promptly initiate the process of matching you with suitable workers. You will be contacted with the details of potential workers as soon as they become available. Please understand that for same-day requests, our ability to find a match depends heavily on the availability of workers at short notice. While we will do our utmost to accommodate same-day requests, we strongly encourage requests to be made in advance to increase the likelihood of successfully matching you with a worker.

Regardless of the timing of your request, we are committed to responding to all inquiries within 24 hours. This ensures that even in cases where immediate worker availability is challenging, you are kept informed of the status of your request and our efforts to fulfill it.

I confirm that I have read and understand the terms regarding communication and response times

Frequently Asked Questions

What happens when I submit this form?

1. Your request goes straight into our job tracking system and alerts our staff. You'll get an automatic confirmation email. 2. We confirm the details with you within 24 hours. If we have a question about the job, we'll call or email. Otherwise we start looking for a worker right away. 3. We keep a roster of our members and their skills. The worker receives your full job details before agreeing, including the description, location, date and time, hours, and proposed payment. Once they accept, we tell you who is coming and what their relevant experience is. 4. We confirm with both sides the day before and the day of the job. We contact you and the worker to confirm time, location, and transportation. 5. We follow up afterward. Within two days we ask whether the work was done to your satisfaction and whether you would hire through us again. We also check with the worker that payment was settled. We don't close a job in our system until we've heard from both of you.

How is pay decided?

You propose an hourly rate on the form, and we pass that information on to our workers. In some cases, we may reach out with an adjusted payment recommendation. Pay goes directly to the worker at the end of the job unless you agree otherwise in advance.

What are suggested payments for different jobs?

Moving Without transportation provided: $30 - $35 per hour With transportation provided: $25 - $30 per hour Construction General labor: $30 - $40 per hour Skilled labor (e.g., carpentry, electrical work): $35 - $50 per hour Gardening Basic gardening tasks: $25 - $30 per hour More skilled tasks (e.g., landscape design, plant care expertise): $30 - $40 per hour Landscaping Basic landscaping: $30 - $35 per hour Specialized landscaping (e.g., intricate designs, use of heavy machinery): $35 - $50 per hour Plumbing Basic plumbing tasks: $35 - $45 per hour Advanced/specialized plumbing work: $45 - $60 per hour Demolition Basic demolition work: $30 - $40 per hour Heavy or specialized demolition: $40 - $55 per hour

What do I need to provide?

A safe work site and drinking water. If the job needs specialized tools or materials, sort that out with us beforehand. Not all of our members have access to cars. Offering transportation is not required, but will increase the number of workers who can take your job.

Can I request the same worker again?

Yes, and we encourage it. Tell us who and we will check their availability. We ask that repeat work be arranged through the center so it stays tracked and other members get a fair share of jobs.

Do I need to complete a Form 1-9?

For a one-time or occasional job around your home, no. Federal law requires Form I-9 for employees, and USCIS exempts individuals employed for casual domestic work in a private home on a sporadic, irregular, or intermittent basis, along with independent contractors. USCIS gives handyman, babysitter, and cleaning person as examples. The exemption turns on the regularity of work. Someone working in your home on a regular basis, such as every week, does require an I-9.

Do I become and employer? Do I owe payroll taxes?

For a single job, almost certainly not. In California you become a household employer once you pay $750 or more in cash wages in a calendar quarter to household employees, and registration with the Employment Development Department is due within 15 days of crossing that threshold. The wage amount then determines which payroll taxes apply. If you are hiring often enough to approach it, talk to a tax professional; the EDD's Household Employer's Guide (DE 8829) covers the details.

What about injuries and workers' compensation?

California excludes certain residential workers from workers' compensation. Under Labor Code section 3352, a person hired to work on a residence is not an employee for workers' compensation purposes if, in the 90 days before an injury, the employment was for less than 52 hours or was contracted for wages of $100 or less. Most single-day jobs fall under that threshold. Many homeowners policies do include coverage for residential employees, and the terms vary, so check yours. California courts have held a homeowner can still be civilly liable for their own negligence even where workers' compensation does not apply.