Washington's Equal Pay and Opportunity Act (EPOA) is a hot topic in Washington state, with well over 100 class-action lawsuits filed under the law in the past 18 months.
In short, the EPOA requires employers to disclose...more
11/1/2024
/ Administrative Interpretation ,
Class Action ,
Disclosure ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Equal Pay ,
Job Ads ,
Job Applicants ,
Judicial Interpretation ,
New Regulations ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
State Labor Laws ,
Wage and Hour ,
Washington
The Washington State Department of Labor and Industries announced that Washington’s minimum wage, which is tied to inflation, will increase from $16.28 to $16.66 starting in 2025. Many local jurisdictions have higher minimum...more
In Androckitis v. Virginia Mason Medical Center, the Washington State Court of Appeals recently held that the remedy for meal period violations includes three components: (1) payment of time worked during the meal period;...more
Washington Governor Jay Inslee signed into law Substitute House Bill 1905 on March 28, 2024, broadening the scope of Washington’s Equal Pay and Opportunities Act (EPOA)....more
4/30/2024
/ Employer Liability Issues ,
Equal Pay ,
Equal Pay Act ,
Gender-Based Pay Discrimination ,
Governor Inslee ,
Legislative Agendas ,
New Legislation ,
Pay Equity Laws ,
State and Local Government ,
State Labor Laws ,
Wage and Hour ,
Washington
Certain construction workers and other employees in the construction industry must be paid the entire balance of accrued and unused paid sick leave if those workers separate from employment before they reach their 90th day of...more
2/7/2024
/ Construction Industry ,
Construction Workers ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Labor Regulations ,
NAICS ,
New Legislation ,
Paid Sick Leave ,
Sick Leave ,
Wage and Hour ,
Washington
Multiple new laws will take effect in Washington state beginning January 2024, bringing changes to the state’s minimum wage laws and adding requirements under the state’s Paid Sick Leave Law. ...more
The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) issued Field Assistance Bulletin No. 2023-2 on May 17, 2023, to provide guidance to its field staff regarding enforcement of the Providing Urgent Maternal Protections for Nursing Mothers Act...more
7/11/2023
/ Breastfeeding ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Training ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Policies ,
Enforcement ,
Exceptions ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Human Resources Professionals ,
Lactation Accommodation ,
New Guidance ,
New Legislation ,
Notice Requirements ,
Providing Urgent Maternal Protections for Nursing Mothers Act (“PUMP Act”) ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
State and Local Government ,
Undue Hardship ,
Wage and Hour
Multiple new laws took effect in Washington at the beginning of the year, including several that increased the minimum wage in various locations across the state. ...more
The Washington Employment Security Department (ESD) has recently been auditing Seattle restaurants, resorts, hotels, and nightclubs and claiming that, under Washington law, their musicians (such as solo artists, pianists, and...more
Seattle’s new Independent Contractor Protections Ordinance (the Ordinance) took effect on September 1, 2022. The law requires certain employers to provide independent contractors with disclosures both before entering a...more
Governor Jay Inslee signed ESHB 2076 into law on March 31, 2022, making Washington the first state to require minimum per-trip payments, paid sick leave, and workers’ compensation benefits for rideshare drivers. The law also...more
Washington Governor Jay Inslee, on March 30, 2022, signed into law amendments to the state’s Equal Pay and Opportunity Act (EPOA Amendments), which soon will require most Washington employers to include pay ranges and...more
4/4/2022
/ Employer Liability Issues ,
Equal Pay ,
Equal Pay Act ,
Governor Inslee ,
Job Applicants ,
New Legislation ,
Pay Equity Laws ,
Pay Transparency ,
State and Local Government ,
State Labor Laws ,
Wage and Hour ,
Washington
In Port of Tacoma v. Sacks, the Court of Appeals of the State of Washington recently held that all out-of-town employee travel time is compensable under state law. The decision confirms the Washington State Department of...more
10/5/2021
/ Appeals ,
Compensation ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Litigation ,
State and Local Government ,
State Labor Laws ,
Travel Time ,
Traveling Employee ,
Wage and Hour ,
Washington
Overview of ESD Audits -
The Washington State Employment Security Department (ESD) audits records of employers located in Washington to confirm that wages and hours are accurately reported and to ensure compliance with the...more
10/5/2021
/ Audits ,
Best Practices ,
Compliance ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Independent Contractors ,
Reporting Requirements ,
State and Local Government ,
State Labor Laws ,
Unemployment Insurance ,
Wage and Hour ,
Washington
On April 16, 2021, Governor Jay Inslee signed into law the Washington Wage Recovery Act, allowing employees to place a lien on their employers’ property to secure unpaid wages.
The purpose of the law is to provide...more
6/24/2021
/ Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Governor Inslee ,
Liens ,
New Legislation ,
Property Liens ,
State and Local Government ,
State Labor Laws ,
State Legislatures ,
Unpaid Wages ,
Wage and Hour
In response to last year’s groundbreaking decision by the Washington State Supreme Court in Martinez-Cuevas v. DeRuyter Bros. Dairy, Inc., the state legislature recently passed Engrossed Substitute Senate Bill 5172 (SB5172),...more
5/19/2021
/ Agribusiness ,
Agricultural Sector ,
Agricultural Workers ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Labor Regulations ,
Minimum Wage ,
Non-Exempt Employees ,
Over-Time ,
Retroactive Application ,
State and Local Government ,
State Labor Laws ,
State Legislatures ,
WA Supreme Court ,
Wage and Hour
In 2019, Washington passed the first law in the nation requiring employees to fund a state-operated long-term care insurance program. The program, codified at RCW 50B.04 and set to begin on January 1, 2025, will be funded by...more
On February 3, 2021, Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan signed into law a new ordinance requiring grocery employers to provide their employees an additional $4.00/hour in hazard pay due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The law went into...more
2/18/2021
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Covered Employees ,
Covered Employer ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Grocery Store Workers ,
Grocery Stores ,
Hazard Pay ,
Labor Law Violations ,
State and Local Government ,
Wage and Hour ,
Written Notice
In a 5-4 decision, a divided Washington Supreme Court ruled that dairy workers are entitled to overtime pay under Washington law if they work more than 40 hours a week, nullifying an exemption to the Washington Minimum Wage...more
One year after New York City did the same, Seattle enacted an ordinance in 2019 that guarantees a minimum wage for local rideshare drivers. Following an independent city-commissioned study that determined the exact amount...more
The best laid plans of mice and men often go awry. Washington state’s 60-day legislative session ended on Thursday, March 12, 2020, after the rapid spread of COVID-19 around the state drastically changed the outcome of this...more
The Washington State Department of Labor & Industries (L&I) recently announced significant revisions to Washington’s overtime rules for the first time in 40 years. The new rules will go into effect beginning on July 1, 2020,...more
12/31/2019
/ Department of Labor & Industry ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Exempt-Employees ,
Job Duties ,
New Legislation ,
Over-Time ,
Salaried Employees ,
State Labor Laws ,
Wage and Hour ,
White-Collar Exemptions
Beginning in January 2020, Washington employees can start using new benefits under the Paid Family and Medical Leave Act (PFML). Employees and employers have paid the required premiums on the new paid leave benefits for all...more
The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) issued its long-awaited rule changes to the Fair Labor Standards Act’s (FLSA) overtime requirements on September 24, 2019. Employers who have been operating under the existing 2004 rules...more
Recently enacted amendments to Washington’s Equal Pay and Opportunities Act (EPOA) will take effect on July 28, 2019. The Washington legislature passed the EPOA in March 2018, expanding Washington’s gender pay equity law for...more
7/24/2019
/ Employer Liability Issues ,
Equal Pay ,
Gender-Based Pay Discrimination ,
Governor Inslee ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Job Applicants ,
New Legislation ,
Pay Equity Laws ,
Pay Gap ,
Salary/Wage History ,
State and Local Government ,
State Labor Laws ,
Wage and Hour