Cleaning startup Homejoy shuts down as some staff join Google

Homejoy, the cleaning service startup that has raised almost $40 million, is shutting down, its CEO announced Friday. The company has reportedly been struggling financially for some time and is facing four lawsuits over its classification of workers as independent contractors.

Some of its engineering team has already been snapped up by Google, who may be considering making its own push into the house cleaning space, according to a report.

The startup, which matched house cleaners and homeowners via its app, will cease operations on July 31, CEO Adora Cheung said Friday. Despite having raised nearly $40 million in funding, the startup was reportedly struggling to raise more cash while facing four lawsuits. Cheung told Recode it was the lawsuits — all of which challenged the company's classification of its workers as contractors rather than employees — that became the "deciding factor" in the decision to shut down. Read more...