When Mayor Bill de Blasio announced a COVID-19 vaccine mandate for private sector workers earlier this month, he said the first-in-the nation policy would apply to roughly 184,000 businesses across the city.

But unbeknownst to some city residents, the sweeping requirement also extends to another group: private citizens who employ a sole proprietor, such as a babysitter or housekeeper, inside their own homes, according to the city Law Department.

The parameters, which took effect on Monday, mean that city residents who may not think of themselves as traditional employers are now legally required to check the vaccination status of those paid to work in their homes, according to Nicholas Paolucci, a Law Department spokesperson.

"When you're overseeing the workplace, you're technically the covered employer and you have to ensure compliance of the employee coming into your home," Paolucci said.

Under the city’s latest executive order, if the person is employed by another agency — for example a plumbing company or babysitting agency — that entity would be responsible for checking their employees’ vaccination status. But in situations where the professional is an independent contractor, the responsibility for verifying vaccination status falls to the person whose home is being used as a “workplace,” the city said.

Those who don’t abide by the rules could face a fine of $1,000 – with escalating penalties on subsequent violations, according to the city’s guidelines.

The mandate comes as the rapid spread of the omicron variant has led to skyrocketing COVID-19 cases across the region. As of this week, 80.6% of city residents had received at least one dose of the vaccine.

At a press conference on Monday, de Blasio said that a multi-agency task force of inspectors would work “energetically” to crack down on scofflaws, “but with the goal to educate and correct, ideally avoiding penalties.”

The inspections, he said, would mirror those that have taken place under the Key to NYC mandate, which began requiring vaccinations for in-person activities such as bars and restaurants in August.

But as the latest executive order expands the mandate to anyone who “maintains a workplace in New York City,” the policy now extends to private homes, according to the Law Department.

It’s unclear, though, how enforcement will play out. The rules may change within the week, as Mayor Eric Adams has said he plans to re-evaluate the mandate. The city’s guidance also does not specify the amount of time one needs to spend in a home or workplace to be considered subject to the mandate. Delivery workers, and others who enter a home for a “quick and limited” purpose, are exempt from the requirement.

In the case of TaskRabbit, an online platform where people can find freelance laborers, contractors are not required to submit proof of vaccination, according to a company representative. As a result, the responsibility to check vaccination status falls to the customer – though only in some cases.

“Regarding [TaskRabbit], it depends on what the task is,” Paolucci said in an email, adding that they didn’t have information about the amount of time a task could take before it became covered.

The new parameters have left some residents and building owners scrambling to make sense of how the mandate applies to homes. Over the weekend, AKAM, a property manager with roughly 50,000 units across the city, informed residents that they would have to obtain vaccine compliance forms from any worker entering their building.

“Each resident should be able to provide that proof of vaccination to the Management team if requested,” an email sent by AKAM read. “The property reserves the right to revert any fines or other penalties for non-compliance back to the resident if they are determined to be the cause for non-compliance.

Andrew Leight, the director of management at AKAM, said he received several calls and emails from residents in the last few days. He compared the vaccine form to a certificate of insurance, similar to what a plumber or electrician would submit before doing work in an apartment.

“Despite some of the administrative headaches in dealing with it, it's required and we want to make sure all of our properties are in compliance,” he said by phone.

Other business owners, meanwhile, praised the near-universal reach of the mandate. Timothy Wong, the founder of a pest control company with roughly 75 employees, said that companies and buildings had been requesting he send only vaccinated exterminators for nearly a year.

“We did have a technician who didn’t want to get vaccinated. We encouraged him, but we had no other mandate, and we didn’t have legal rights to do anything,” Wong said. “Since the mandate came into place, he got vaccinated, so that solves that. It makes it a whole lot easier.”

This story has been updated to clarify the city's vaccine mandate and how it affects workers in private residences.