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Employer Liability Issues Labor Reform Washington

Seyfarth Shaw LLP

Washington Amends Employee Personnel File Access Laws

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The Washington Legislature has passed a new law affecting employers’ obligations related to employee personnel files.  The new law amends RCW 49.12.240 and 49.12.250 in four important ways...more

Vorys, Sater, Seymour and Pease LLP

Washington Employers Face Minimum Wage and Salary Threshold Increases

Effective January 1, 2025, Washington’s state minimum wage will increase to $16.66 per hour, a 2.35% increase over 2024. In addition to complying with the state’s minimum wage requirements, Washington employers also need to...more

Seyfarth Shaw LLP

Washington Increases Minimum Wage and Salary Thresholds for Exemption and Non-Competes

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The Washington State Department of Labor and Industries has announced the state minimum wage for 2025.  In Washington, the state minimum wage is calculated annually (and generally increases) based on inflation.  Effective...more

Perkins Coie

Minimum Wage Increase and Other New Requirements for Renton Employers

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The city of Renton, Washington, finalized rules to implement Initiative 23-02 on May 31, 2024. The initiative was approved by Renton voters in February 2024 and codified within Chapter 5-28 and Section 5-5-4 of the Renton...more

Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton LLP

Washington’s Amended Non-Compete Law Creates New Considerations for Employers

Washington Governor Jay Inslee recently signed Senate Bill 5935 into law, amending and expanding Washington’s statute restricting the enforceability of noncompetition covenants (Revised Code of Washington 49.2). The amended...more

Perkins Coie

Washington State Tightens Noncompete Restrictions

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Washington state businesses that have noncompetition agreements with employees or independent contractors will be subject to new requirements under the latest amendment to the state’s noncompetition law beginning June 6,...more

Perkins Coie

New Washington Law Protects Job Applicants’ Off-Duty Marijuana Use

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Beginning in 2024, both Washington and California will prohibit employers from basing hiring decisions on an applicant’s legal marijuana use. What Is Prohibited? Effective January 1, 2024, employers are prohibited...more

Schwabe, Williamson & Wyatt PC

Exploring the Implications of the 2023 Pregnant Workers Fairness Act

The Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (“PWFA”) was passed as part of the December 29, 2022 Consolidated Appropriations Act, a new federal law that went into effect on June 27, 2023. This federal legislation requires covered...more

Seyfarth Shaw LLP

Employers Feeling the Heat: Washington Adopts Permanent Changes to Outdoor Heat Exposure Rules Effective July 17, 2023

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Seyfarth Synopsis: Effective July 17, 2023, employers with outdoor workers in the state of Washington will be required to follow revised heat illness prevention rules. The revised rules modify Washington’s long-standing 2008...more

Littler

New Growth of State and Local Paid Leave Developments in the Evergreen State

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Spring has sprung in the State of Washington, and there are several new paid leave developments taking root. First, the Washington Paid Family and Medical Leave Act, which generally provides leave with partial wage...more

Jackson Lewis P.C.

New Washington Law Regulates Warehouse Distribution Center Worker Quotas

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A new Washington law regulating employers’ use of production quotas or production standards for employees working at warehouse distribution centers (House Bill 1762) will go into effect on July 1, 2024....more

Littler

Washington Amends Law to Protect Off-Duty Marijuana Use in 2024

Littler on

On Tuesday, May 9, 2023, Governor Inslee signed into law Senate Bill No. 5123, which will protect prospective employees from discrimination in hiring due to their lawful, off-duty use of marijuana. With this law, Washington...more

Morgan Lewis

Seattle Becomes First US Jurisdiction to Add Caste as a Protected Class

Morgan Lewis on

The city council of Seattle recently added caste as a protected class to the city’s anti-discrimination laws. In doing so, Seattle becomes the first US jurisdiction to ban caste discrimination and the first in the world to...more

Littler

Seattle Becomes the First U.S. Jurisdiction to Prohibit Caste Discrimination

Littler on

On February 21, 2023, the City of Seattle, Washington became the first U.S. city – or any U.S. jurisdiction for that matter – to add caste to its list of categories protected against discrimination.  As described below, this...more

Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati

Check Your Job Postings: Washington’s Pay Transparency Law Goes into Effect

If they haven’t already, employers should ensure that their job postings comply with Washington State’s new pay transparency law, which, in many instances, applies even to businesses outside of the state. The law went into...more

DCI Consulting

New Pay Transparency Requirements for State of Washington Job Posts

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On November 30, 2022, the State of Washington issued its Administrative Policy for the state’s Equal Pay and Opportunities Act. The law, which is meant to prevent discrimination and promote pay equity for workers, takes...more

Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati

Independent Contractor Ordinance Expands Protections for Contractors in Seattle

As a reminder to companies with independent contractors performing work in Seattle, the city's Independent Contractor Protections Ordinance, SMC 14.34, which expands protections for independent contractors, went into effect...more

Lasher Holzapfel Sperry & Ebberson PLLC

Employment Law Alert: Silenced No More Act

Washington now prohibits nondisclosure and nondisparagement agreements between employers and employees relating to certain illegal conduct. The Silenced No More Act was signed into law this spring and makes void and...more

Perkins Coie

Washington State’s Emergency Outdoor Heat Exposure Rules Now in Effect

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With summer underway, employers in the state of Washington are reminded to follow the state’s new emergency outdoor heat exposure rules, which went into effect on June 15, 2022. These rules apply through September 29, 2022,...more

Littler

Washington Becomes Third Jurisdiction to Require Wage Disclosures in Job Postings

Littler on

In an effort to close what is viewed as a persistent pay gap, Washington has amended its Equal Pay and Opportunities Act (EPOA) for the second time to require employers to include wage and benefit information in their job...more

Proskauer - Law and the Workplace

Washington State to Require Employers to Provide Salary Ranges and Other Compensation Information in Job Postings

On March 30, 2022, Washington Governor Inslee signed into law a bill that will require employers to include a salary or pay range, as well as information about other compensation and benefits, in each job posting. The bill...more

Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough LLP

New Washington Law Bans Nondisclosure and Nondisparagement Provisions and Applies Retroactively

On March 24, 2022, Washington Governor Jay Inslee signed into law ESHB 1795, which generally prohibits nondisclosure and nondisparagement provisions in agreements between employers and employees.  The law, which applies to...more

Proskauer - Law and the Workplace

Washington Passes “Silenced No More Act” Limiting Nondisclosure and Nondisparagement Provisions In Employment And Independent...

On March 24, 2022, Washington Governor Jay Inslee signed into law Engrossed Substitute House Bill 1795 also known as the “Silenced No More Act” (“the Act”). The Act prohibits agreements containing nondisclosure and...more

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