Childcare workers at seven Kiddie Academy franchise locations across King and Snohomish counties can now babysit and nanny on their own time.
The centers entered a consent decree in King County Superior Court in October requiring them to pay $252,500 to affected workers and rewrite their employee handbooks. The state attorney general's office alleged the centers violated Washington's non-compete law (RCW 49.62) by barring employees from providing childcare to enrolled or formerly enrolled families during off-hours and weekends.
The state estimates more than 600 workers may have been affected across the franchise locations, as first reported by the Seattle Times.
That matters for a workforce earning close to minimum wage. Workers told state investigators the centers paid $22 to $23 an hour, according to the Seattle Times.
Under Washington law, employers cannot restrict moonlighting for workers earning less than twice the hourly minimum wage. Seattle's minimum wage is $21.30 an hour.
The seven franchises named in the decree are Seattle Academy LLC, Bellevue Childcare LLC, Bothell Academy LLC, Greenwood Academy LLC, Kenmore Academy LLC, Mill Creek Academy LLC and Redkirk Academy LLC.
The owner of all seven is listed as Ramandeep Josan on the state Department of Revenue business lookup database, the Seattle Times reported. Josan did not respond to the Seattle Times' request for comment.
The centers deny they broke the law. According to the consent decree, the franchises "expressly deny" the state's allegations and entered the settlement without admitting wrongdoing.
The state's complaint described the practice as "a blanket prohibition on babysitting whether with current or former Academies families," according to the Seattle Times.
The complaint also stated that many employees "needed to supplement their income, yet were prohibited from moonlighting."
Under the decree, the centers must revise their handbooks within 30 days to state that workers earning less than twice the minimum wage do not need prior permission to provide outside childcare to current or former families.
Workers who babysit for currently enrolled families must give advance notice to their director or manager. The centers must also train all managers and human resources staff on the state's non-compete law.
The attorney general's office will monitor compliance for two years. Violations could trigger additional penalties.
This is the first case resolved by Attorney General Nick Brown's Worker Rights Unit, which the AG's office said was established in November 2025.
Marsha Chien, a former deputy solicitor general in the office, leads the unit.
"We will continue to hold employers accountable when they break Washington law," Brown said in a statement.
Workers who believe their rights have been violated can contact the Worker Rights Unit at [email protected].
