Washington lawmakers were busy this year, and a wave of new laws will have a major impact on the workplace. Employers must be aware of significant workplace laws taking effect within the next year, including 11 new laws that...more
7/30/2025
/ Agricultural Workers ,
Business Closures ,
Child Labor ,
Coercion ,
Collective Bargaining ,
Construction Project ,
Criminal Background Checks ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Driver's Licenses ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Policies ,
Equal Pay ,
Family Medical Leave ,
Hate Crimes ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Job Ads ,
Job Applicants ,
Labor Law Violations ,
Layoffs ,
Mini-Warn Acts ,
New Legislation ,
Notice and Cure Requirement ,
Notice Requirements ,
Paid Family Leave Law ,
Paid Sick Leave ,
Personnel Records ,
Prevailing Wages ,
Private Right of Action ,
Public Projects ,
Safety Standards ,
State Labor Laws ,
Time-Off Policies ,
Unemployment Benefits ,
Unions ,
Wage and Hour ,
Washington ,
Workplace Safety
Washington employers will soon get some relief from the state’s strict job posting requirements after lawmakers unanimously passed a law to mitigate some of the more onerous parts of the key state statute. Starting July 27,...more
In a first-of-its-kind decision, the Washington Supreme Court took aim at the ability of employers to prevent low wage employees in the state from “moonlighting” or otherwise supplementing their income during their...more
2/18/2025
/ Duty of Loyalty ,
Employee Handbooks ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Contract ,
Employment Policies ,
Low-Wage Workers ,
Moonlighting ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Restrictive Covenants ,
State Labor Laws ,
WA Supreme Court ,
Washington
Hospitality industry employers know that scheduling the right number of workers on any given day – or shift – is a challenge. In addition to unpredictable customer patterns, the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, labor shortages, and...more
Adding to the sea of troubles that employers faced in the year just gone by, the status of Washington State’s new long-term care payroll tax is now up in the air. Employers in the Evergreen State are now faced with a dilemma...more
Governor Inslee and Washington’s Department of Health have been busy the past two weeks modifying existing mask rules and enacting new vaccine requirements for certain classes of healthcare workers. There has been enough...more
8/25/2021
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employer Mandates ,
Governor Inslee ,
Health and Safety ,
Healthcare Workers ,
Masks ,
Public Health ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
State Health Departments ,
Vaccinations ,
Workplace Safety
Despite the CDC’s recent news regarding relaxed mask recommendations, those Washington employers eager to return to business as usual must still comply with Governor Inslee’s May 21 “Safe Workers’ Proclamation” and Washington...more
5/28/2021
/ Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employer Responsibilities ,
Employment Policies ,
Governor Inslee ,
Health and Safety ,
High Risk Covid Employees ,
Interactive Process ,
Masks ,
New Guidance ,
Re-Opening Guidelines ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Social Distancing ,
Vaccinations ,
Workplace Safety
Washington Governor Jay Inslee recently amended an executive proclamation that imposes certain workplace protection for high-risk workers during pandemic, granting employers some additional flexibility that will take effect...more
Hospitality employers face some of the strictest workplace safety requirements intended to address the COVID-19 pandemic under state, county, and or even city requirements. These include mandates for employee pre-shift...more
7/31/2020
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employee Privacy Rights ,
Employee Training ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Health and Safety ,
Hospitality Industry ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Sick Employees ,
Virus Testing ,
Wage and Hour ,
Workplace Safety
Washington’s Department of Labor and Industries just decided to substantially raise the state’s salary threshold to meet the salary basis test for “white collar” overtime exemptions. As set out more specifically below,...more
12/16/2019
/ Department of Labor & Industry ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Exempt-Employees ,
Minimum Salary ,
Misclassification ,
New Legislation ,
Over-Time ,
Salaried Employees ,
State Labor Laws ,
Wage and Hour ,
White-Collar Exemptions
Finding that “workforce mobility is important to economic growth and development,” Washington just passed a new law that will significantly restrict noncompetition agreements with both employees and independent contractors....more
Washington employers, get ready. Starting January 1, 2019, the state’s Employment Security Department (ESD) will begin collecting premium payments from employers so the historic Paid Family and Medical Leave (PFML) program...more
12/14/2018
/ Employee Benefits ,
Employee Training ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Policies ,
Medical Leave ,
New Legislation ,
Notice Requirements ,
Paid Leave ,
Reporting Requirements ,
State Labor Laws ,
Wage and Hour
Washington’s lawmakers and regulators have not taken a summer holiday this year, remaining active by passing new regulations based on legislation from the last legislative cycle or reacting to new case law by creating new...more
6/28/2018
/ Amended Legislation ,
Arbitration ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Class Action Arbitration Waivers ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Policies ,
Executive Orders ,
Federal Arbitration Act ,
Federal Contractors ,
Governor Inslee ,
Medical Leave ,
New Regulations ,
Paid Family Leave Law ,
Paid Leave ,
Paid Time Off (PTO) ,
Remand ,
Reversal ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Savings Clause ,
SCOTUS ,
Sick Leave ,
State Labor Laws
In the wake of the Harvey Weinstein scandal and the #MeToo movement, Washington employers will soon need to comply with two new laws aimed at preventing sexual harassment and assault in the workplace while encouraging open...more
3/23/2018
/ Anti-Harassment Policies ,
Anti-Retaliation Provisions ,
Best Practices ,
Confidentiality Agreements ,
Employee Training ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Governor Inslee ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Human Resources Professionals ,
New Legislation ,
Non-Disclosure Agreement ,
Settlement Agreements ,
Sexual Assault ,
Sexual Harassment
Washington employers are already under the gun to develop policies and practices to meet the requirements of the state’s new paid sick law that takes effect on January 1, 2018. Those with multiple Washington locations have...more
12/20/2017
/ Collective Bargaining ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Exempt-Employees ,
Local Ordinance ,
Municipalities ,
New Amendments ,
Paid Leave ,
Sick Leave ,
State Labor Laws ,
Wage and Hour
The past year has brought multiple new workplace laws that will require employers in Washington to change several key policies and procedures. Below is an update that provides a general overview to help you prepare for these...more
9/21/2017
/ Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Policies ,
Medical Leave ,
Minimum Wage ,
New Legislation ,
Paid Family Leave Law ,
Paid Leave ,
Paid Sick Leave Act ,
Pregnancy ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Sick Leave ,
State Labor Laws ,
Undue Hardship ,
Wage and Hour ,
Work Schedules
In keeping with its goal of pioneering workers’ rights, Seattle’s City Council passed its controversial Secure Scheduling Ordinance on September 19, 2016, which will require certain retail and food establishments to provide...more
9/22/2016
/ Business Justification ,
Covered Employees ,
Covered Employer ,
Employee Rights ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Fines ,
Interactive Process ,
Local Ordinance ,
Retaliation ,
Wage and Hour ,
Work Schedules
Amidst the uber-media commotion over the Seattle City Council’s December 14 adoption of a law allowing independent contractor rideshare drivers to unionize, many missed that Seattle also passed a significant bill amending...more
With some limited exceptions, Washington State wage and hour rules require that workers receive a paid 10 minute rest break for every four hours worked. The Washington Supreme Court has now expanded employer obligations in...more