On April 18, 2024, a jury in Seattle, Washington, determined that a not-for-profit hospital system employer would be required to pay nearly $100 million for time clock rounding and meal period violations, raising concerns for...more
4/23/2024
/ Collective Bargaining Agreements (CBA) ,
Compensatory Damages ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Litigation ,
Jury Awards ,
Jury Verdicts ,
Rest and Meal Break ,
Rounding ,
State Labor Departments ,
State Labor Laws ,
Wage and Hour ,
Willful Violations
The 2024 Washington State Legislature passed Substitute Senate Bill (S.S.B.) 5935 in February 2024, and Governor Jay Inslee signed the bill into law on March 13, 2024, updating and clarifying Washington law regarding...more
3/29/2024
/ Choice-of-Law ,
Contract Drafting ,
Contract Terms ,
Effective Date ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Contract ,
Governor Inslee ,
Hiring & Firing ,
New Legislation ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Non-Solicitation Agreements ,
Restrictive Covenants ,
State Labor Laws
Effective January 1, 2024, the minimum wage rate in Washington State will increase to $16.28 per hour for employees sixteen years of age and older, the Washington State Department of Labor and Industries announced on...more
Employers in Washington are facing a flurry of class actions alleging violations of the state’s new pay transparency law. While it is too early to gauge the viability of the claims, employers doing business in Washington may...more
10/17/2023
/ Class Action ,
Damages ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Litigation ,
Governor Inslee ,
Injunctive Relief ,
Job Ads ,
Pay Transparency ,
Posting Requirements ,
Putative Class Actions ,
State Labor Laws ,
Wage and Hour
A putative class action recently filed in Seattle, Washington, against a solar energy equipment company could be the first lawsuit to test the bounds of the state’s relatively new restrictions on noncompetition agreements for...more
The 2023 minimum wage rate in Washington State will increase to $15.74 per hour for employees sixteen years of age and older, the Washington State Department of Labor & Industries announced on September 30, 2022. This...more
On March 30, 2022, Washington Governor Jay Inslee signed into law Senate Bill (SB) 5761, a measure that requires employers to affirmatively disclose in each job posting open to applicants the salary range or wage scale to be...more
On January 27, 2022, Governor Jay Inslee signed two bills that delay implementation and propose several reforms to the Washington Cares Act, which created a payroll tax to support Washington residents with the costs of...more
In 2021, Washington established a long-term care benefit program for Washington workers called the WA Cares Fund. In short, the program implements a mandatory 0.58 percent payroll deduction on employee wages to create a state...more
In May 2019, Washington enacted restrictions on noncompetition covenants, which we wrote about in our article, “Washington State Governor Signs Legislation Restricting Noncompetition Covenants,” and which took effect on...more
New legislation recently introduced in the Washington State Legislature seeks to implement a 32-hour workweek for nonexempt Washington-based workers. If the proposal were to become law, employers would be required to pay...more
On May 8, 2019, Washington State Governor Jay Inslee signed new restrictions on noncompetition covenants for Washington employees. The new restrictions are effective January 1, 2020. Key elements of this new law include the...more
On May 9, 2019, Washington State governor Jay Inslee signed House Bill 1696, “an act relating to wage and salary information.” The new law is similar to legislation being promulgated throughout the country, including by...more