Washington Labor Law (2024 Guide)

Wage and Hour Laws

Minimum Wage

As of January 1, 2024, Washington’s minimum wage is $16.28 per hour. 

The state minimum wage applies to most employers and employees with some exceptions, including workers aged 14 to 15. The Minimum Wage Act also lists various exemptions, including:

• Executive, administrative, and professional workers. 
• Volunteers.
• Workers required to live or sleep at their workplaces.

If approved, employers can pay a subminimum wage to the following workers:

• Apprentices.
• On-the-job learners. 
• Student workers and student learners. 
• Workers with disabilities.

The Department of Labor and Industries (L&I) adjusts the state minimum wage annually to reflect cost-of-living increases. New minimum wages are announced on September 30 each year. 

Covered employers in some cities must pay employees a higher minimum wage. These cities are:

• Bellingham: $17.28/hour.
• Seattle: $19.97/hour (unless the employer has 500 or fewer employees and pays $2.72 in medical benefits or tips—in which case, the minimum wage is $17.25/hour).  
• SeaTac: $19.71/hour for hospitality and transport industry workers.
• Tukwila: $19.29/hour (mid-size employers) and $20.29/hour (large employers).
• Renton: $18.29/hour (mid-size employers) and $20.29/hour (large employers).

In Tukwila and Renton, mid-size employers are those with 15-500 employees worldwide or more than $2 million gross revenue, and large employers are those with over 500 employees worldwide. 

Transport Network Company (TNC) drivers like Uber and Lyft also have separate minimum pay requirements. 

Tipped Minimum Wage

There’s no tipped minimum wage in Washington. Employers can’t count tips toward the minimum wage when paying employees. 

Employers must give employees all tips they receive. 

Tip pooling is allowed in Washington as long as only employees covered by the Minimum Wage Act are included. This means managers and supervisors can’t be part of a tip pool. 

Overtime Laws

An employee who works more than 40 hours across a 7-day work period must be paid 1.5 times their regular hourly rate. 

These overtime provisions don’t apply to some employees, including:

• Those exempt from the Minimum Wage Act.
• Seamen.
• Seasonal employees at agricultural fairs.

Washington employers can require employees to work overtime. 

Meal Breaks

Employees who work more than 5 hours must be given a minimum 30-minute meal break during this work time. These breaks are unpaid if the employee is relieved of all work duties and isn’t on call. 

A meal break must be taken after an employee has worked at least 2 hours—but no later than after 5 hours into their shift.

When an employee works 3 or more hours overtime, they must take a break at the start of their overtime hours. 

Rest Breaks

Employers must give each employee a paid rest break for every 4 hours worked. This break must be at least 10 minutes. 

Employees should take their break as close as possible to halfway through their shift and no later than after 3 consecutive hours. 

These breaks count towards calculating paid sick leave and overtime entitlements. 

Recordkeeping

Employees must keep wage and hour records for each employee, including their:

• Name.
• Address.
• Role.
• Pay rate.
• Wages for each pay period.
• Daily and weekly hours worked. 

These records must be kept for at least 3 years. 

Employee Scheduling Laws

There are no state-wide scheduling laws in Washington. However, Seattle has one. 

Seattle’s Secure Scheduling Ordinance applies to retail and food service employees who work for businesses with 500 or more employees worldwide. It requires employers to:

• Provide employees with good faith estimates of their hours.
• Post work schedules with at least 14 days’ notice.
• Offer extra hours to current employees before hiring new ones.

The Secure Scheduling Ordinance also requires employers to pay specific penalty rates, including:

• 1.5 times an employee’s regular rate for any hours they work that are less than 10 hours apart from the end of a shift they worked on the previous calendar day (employees can work these “clopening” shifts only if they agree). 
• An extra hour of pay for changes to hours or shift dates or times. 
• Payment for half the hours an employee doesn’t work when they’re sent home early.
• Compensation for half of an employee’s scheduled hours when that employee is on-call but not called in.

Employee Compensation and Benefits

Reporting Time Pay

Washington state doesn’t have any reporting time pay laws. This means employers aren’t required to pay workers who report to work if there’s no work for them to do. Employers must simply pay employees for any time worked. 

Seattle’s Secure Scheduling Ordinance includes a reporting time requirement (see above). 

Payday Frequency and Method

Employees must be paid at least monthly on a regular, scheduled payday. Employers can pay workers by cash, check, direct deposit, or a pre-paid payroll card if there’s no cost to employees. 

Paystub Requirements

Employers must provide employees with pay statements detailing the hours/days they worked, pay rates, gross wages, and any deductions on each payday. 

Once a month, employers must also give employees a statement of their accrued and used paid sick leave. This information can be included in employees’ paystubs. 

Wage Deductions and Garnishments

Deductions

Employers can make deductions from employees’ wages only where they’re required by law or when the employee agrees to them in advance. Deductions can’t reduce an employee’s wage to below the minimum wage. 

Garnishments

Wage garnishments are generally limited to the lesser of:

• 25% of an employee’s weekly disposable earnings, or
• An employee’s weekly disposable earnings minus 35 times the federal minimum wage (currently $7.25/hour). 

Other limits apply for different types of garnishments. For example:

• Spousal support garnishments: 50% of an employee’s disposable earnings. 
• Private student loan garnishments: 15% of an employee’s weekly disposable earnings or an employee’s weekly disposable earnings minus 50 times the highest minimum wage in the state at the time (whichever is less). 
• Consumer debt garnishments: 20% of an employee’s weekly disposable earnings or an employee’s weekly disposable earnings minus an amount that’s 35 times the state minimum hourly wage (whichever is less).

Different limits apply to garnishments for federal student loans and federal taxes. 

Employers can’t discharge an employee based on a wage garnishment unless the employer receives wage garnishment orders from 3 different creditors in 12 months. 

Final Paycheck Laws

An employer must give an employee their final paycheck by the end of the pay period. 

Final paychecks can’t include any deductions unless the deduction is for the employee’s benefit and they’ve provided signed consent.

Withholding final paychecks can result in an employer being ordered to pay the wages due and being charged with a misdemeanor. 

Workers’ Compensation

Washington requires all businesses that hire employees to take out no-fault workers’ compensation insurance (also called industrial insurance), with some limited exceptions. This insurance provides financial compensation to employees in the event of a workplace injury or illness. 

Employers can obtain workers’ compensation insurance either through L&I or by opting to self-insure. 

Workers’ compensation comes out of the Washington State Fund, which is paid for by premiums from employers and employees (collected by employers through payroll deductions). 

Workers’ compensation insurance premiums vary depending on workers’ hours and the nature of their work. Employers must file quarterly reports with L&I to calculate their premiums. 

Washington’s workers’ compensation scheme covers expenses such as:

• Medical costs.
• Rehabilitation.
• Temporary partial wage replacement.
• Permanent partial disability.
• Pensions (where an employee can no longer work).
• Survivor benefits in the event of the death of a worker.

To access workers’ compensation, employees must:

• Report their injury or illness to their employer as soon as possible. 
• File a Report of Accident form with L&I within 12 months of the injury or 2 years from receiving a written diagnosis of an occupational disease or illness. 

Employers must:

• Ensure employees seek the necessary medical treatment.
• Report deaths, hospitalizations, amputations, and eye losses as required. 
• Complete a Report of Accident form when requested by L&I. 

An employee or employer who disagrees with a workers’ compensation decision by L&I can file a written protest within 60 days of the decision (or within 15 days for decisions relating to vocational benefits). They can also appeal to the Board of Industrial Insurance Appeals (BIIA). 

Unemployment Insurance

The Washington State Employment Security Department (ESD) administers unemployment insurance. 

Employer taxes fund unemployment benefits in Washington. 

To be eligible for benefits, workers typically must:

• Be unemployed through no fault of their own.
• Be available to work.
• Have worked in Washington for the last 18 months.
• Have worked at least 680 hours in their base year (the first 4 of the previous 5 calendar quarters).

The amount of unemployment benefits a worker receives depends on their previous earnings. Benefit amounts range from $215 to $1,079 a week. 

Benefits are capped at 26 weeks or a third of a worker’s total gross wages in the 4 quarters of their base year. 

A worker who disagrees with an unemployment benefits decision can appeal it within 30 days of the date the decision was sent. Workers can appeal online or in writing. Appeals are considered first by the ESD and then by the Office of Administrative Hearings (if the ESD chooses to maintain the original decision). 

Workers can appeal OAH decisions by filing a Petition for Review with the ESD Commissioner. 

Workplace Rights and Protections

Discrimination and Harassment

The Washington State Law Against Discrimination prohibits employers with 8 or more employees from discriminating against applicants or employees based on:

• Race, including hair texture or protective hairstyles. 
• Creed.
• Color.
• National origin.
• Citizenship or immigration status.
• Sex.
• Veteran or military status.
• Sexual orientation.
• Disability.
• Age (over 40).
• Use of a guide dog or service animal.

An employee who believes they’ve been discriminated against based on 1 or more characteristics can file a complaint with the Washington State Human Rights Commission (WSHRC) or the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). 

Filing a complaint with one agency automatically registers it with the other. However, a complaint may be required to be filed with WSHRC if:

• It’s against an employer with 8-15 employees (federal discrimination law generally applies to employers with 15 or more employees).
• It relates to a protected characteristic covered only by state law.

WSHRC complaints generally must be filed within 6 months of the final date of the alleged discrimination. 

Washington’s Equal Pay and Opportunities Act (EPOA) requires employers to give men and women who are similarly employed the same pay. From July 1, 2025, the EPOA will prohibit pay discrimination on the basis of any protected class. 

State law also prohibits employers from discriminating against employees on the basis of off-duty cannabis use in hiring decisions only (some exceptions apply). 

Leave Laws

✔ Family and Medical Leave	Washington runs a Paid Family and Medical Leave (PFML) Program funded by employer and employee taxes.  An employee can use PFML for up to 12 weeks: • To deal with their own serious health condition. • To bond with a new child. • To care for a family member with a serious health condition. • For issues related to a family member’s military deployment. Employees can access up to 16 weeks of combined medical and family leave and up to 18 weeks of medical leave for their pregnancy-related disabilities.  To access PFML, employees must have worked in Washington (for any employer) for a minimum of 820 hours across the last 4 calendar quarters or 4 of the last 5 calendar quarters.
✔ Paid Sick Leave	Any employee subject to Washington’s Minimum Wage Act is entitled to paid sick leave.   An employee can use this leave for: • Their own illness, injury, diagnosis, or preventative care. • A family member’s (child’s, parent’s, spouse’s, registered domestic partner’s, grandparent’s, grandchild’s, or sibling’s) illness, injury, diagnosis, or preventative care. • The closure of their workplace or child’s school due to a public health order. • Domestic violence reasons. • Any other reason allowed by the employer. Paid sick leave accrues at a rate of at least 1 hour for each 40 hours an employee works, paid at their regular rate.  Employees can access this leave 90 calendar days after they start working for an employer.  Employers must allow employees to carry accrued sick leave balances into the next year (capped at 40 hours). Sick leave entitlements also apply to rideshare drivers.
✔ Paid Family Leave	The Washington Family Care Act (FCA) allows employees to choose to use other paid leave (including sick leave, paid time off, vacation leave, and personal time) to care for: • A child with a health condition. • Another family member with a serious or emergency health condition. • A wife or daughter disabled as a result of pregnancy or childbirth. Family members who qualify for FCA leave are parents, spouses, registered domestic partners, parents-in-law, and grandparents.  Employers can’t discriminate against employees for using this leave.
𐄂 Pregnancy and Parental Leave	There isn’t a standalone pregnancy or parental leave law in Washington. However, employees may be entitled access to other types of leave for this purpose, including: • Paid Family and Medical Leave.The federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA). • The Washington Family Care Act. • Paid sick leave.  Washington requires employers to provide pregnancy disability leave under its Law Against Discrimination. This applies to businesses with 8 or more employees. Where an employer offers parental leave, it must provide the same entitlements to biological, adoptive, stepparents, men, and women.
𐄂 Vacation and Personal Leave	Washington employers aren’t required to provide employees with vacation or personal leave.

Military, Jury Duty, and Other Mandatory Leave

There are several other types of mandatory leave in Washington.

Military Leave	Employers must re-employ returned service member employees, either in their previous positions or other similar positions (with some limited exceptions). Spouses of military service members can take up to 15 days of unpaid leave during the lead-up to their partner’s deployment and when their partner is back on leave.
Jury Duty Leave	Employees are entitled to unpaid leave to attend jury duty. The law prohibits employers from retaliating against employees for taking this leave.
Crime Victim Leave	Employees who are victims of domestic violence, stalking, or sexual assault—and certain family members of victims—can take reasonable periods of time off for reasons including: • Seeking legal assistance. • Attending court proceedings. • Relocating. • Seeking medical treatment. • Obtaining counseling or other support. They can use accrued paid time off, sick leave, or unpaid leave. Victims of domestic violence and their family members can also ask their employers to make reasonable accommodations, such as transferring locations or changing phone numbers. Employers must make these accommodations unless doing so would cause undue hardship.  Employers can ask for documents to support domestic violence leave requests.
Emergency Leave	Employees who are volunteer firefighters, reserve officers, or members of the Civil Air Patrol can take time off in relation to emergency operations.

Child Labor Laws

Children must be at least 14 years old to work in Washington, with some exceptions, including:

• 12 and 13-year-olds in specific agricultural jobs, such as hand-harvesting spinach and berries.
• Children working on family farms.
• Soccer referees.

An employers can hire a child under 14 if:

• A court in the county where the child lives allows them to do so.
• They obtain an authorization form and a minor work permit.
• They keep proof of the child’s age.

To hire a minor, an employer must:

• Apply for a work permit from the Department of Revenue (DOR).
• Obtain a parent/school authorization form (when school is in session) or summer authorization form (when school isn’t in session) that’s signed by the minor’s parent or guardian. 
• Keep a record of proof-of-age documents.

Minor employees are entitled to paid breaks:

• For minors under 16: a 10-minute rest break every 2 work hours and/or a 30-minute meal break every 4 work hours (employees who work 4 hours can’t go more than 2 hours without either a rest or meal break). 
• For minors aged 16 to 17: a 30-minute meal break for every 5 hours worked and a 10-minute rest break at least every 3 hours. 

Work Hour Restrictions for Non-Agricultural Jobs

	14 and 15-year-olds	16 and 17-year-olds
School week	Can’t work during school hours.  Can otherwise work up to: • 3 hours a day (8 hours on Saturdays and Sundays) • 16 hours a week • 6 days a week Can work between 7am and 7pm.	Can’t work during school hours.  Can otherwise work up to: • 4 hours a day (8 hours Friday to Sunday) • 20 hours a week • 6 days a week Can work between 7am and 10pm (or between 7am and midnight on Friday, Saturday, and the day before a school holiday).  Employers can also agree on special variances with minor workers’ parents and schools. Where agreed, these allow the minor to work up to: • 6 hours a day (8 hours Friday to Sunday) • 28 hours a week • 6 days a week
Non-school week	Can work up to: • 8 hours a day • 40 hours a week • 6 days a week Can work between 7am and 7pm (this extends to 9pm from June 1 to Labor Day)	Can work up to: • 8 hours a day • 48 hours a week • 6 days a week Can work between 5am and midnight.

Work Hour Restrictions for Agricultural Jobs

	12 and 13-year-olds (hand-harvesting berries, cucumbers, bulbs, and spinach)	14 and 15-year-olds	16 and 17-year-olds
School week	Can’t work	Can’t work during school hours.  Can otherwise work up to: • 3 hours a day (8 hours on each non-school day) • 21 hours a week • 6 days a week* Can work between 7am and 8pm (6am for animal agriculture and irrigation workers).	Can’t work during school hours.  Can otherwise work up to: • 4 hours a day (8 hours on each non-school day) • 28 hours a week • 6 days a week* Can work between 5am and 10pm (can’t work after 9pm for more than 2 nights in a row before a school day).
Non-school week	Can work up to: • 8 hours a day • 40 hours a week • 6 days a week Can work between 5am and 9pm.	Can work up to: • 8 hours a day • 40 hours a week • 6 days a week* Can work between 5am and 9pm.	Can work up to: • 10 hours a day • 50 hours a week (60 hours for mechanical harvest of peas, wheat, and hay) • 6 days a week* Can work between 5am and 10pm.
* Minors in the dairy, livestock, irrigation, and hay harvesting industries can work 7 days a week.

Limits on Types of Work

All minors under 18 are prohibited from working in various agricultural and nonagricultural jobs and duties, including:

• Demolition.
• Roofing.
• Meatpacking.
• Logging.
• Working more than 10 feet from ground level.
• Meat slicing operations.
• Service occupations where they’re required to work alone past 8pm without an adult on the premises.

There are further restrictions on children under 16. For example, they’re prohibited from working in various jobs and duties, including:

• Driving a car.
• Doing door-to-door sales.
• Using power-driven machinery.
• Using ladders and scaffolds.

A complete list of prohibited occupations for minors can be found on L&I’s website. 

Penalties

Violations of youth labor laws in Washington can result in civil penalties ranging between $1,000 and $5,000 per violation. 

Workplace Safety and Health

Washington runs its own safety and health program rather than relying on the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). 

L&I’s Department of Occupational Health and Safety (DOSH) administers the Washington Industrial Safety and Health Act (WISHA). To do this, DOSH provides resources, support, and training to employers. It also conducts workplace inspections and imposes penalties for WISHA violations. 

WISHA applies to most Washington employers. It sets out core rules all covered employers must follow, as well as rules that apply to specific industries. Employers’ duties under WISHA include:

• Providing employees with a safe and healthy workplace.
• Preparing and implementing a written workplace safety and health program.
• Displaying the required WISHA poster in the workplace. 
• Maintaining records of any work-related injury and illness as required. 
• Providing appropriate safety and health training to employees. 
• Reporting a death or in-patient hospitalization to L&I within 8 hours of the event. 
• Reporting an amputation or loss of an eye to L&I within 24 hours of the event. 

Workers must follow WISHA’s rules, including to:

• Comply with any workplace safety and health rules. 
• Wear personal protective equipment provided by their employer. 
• Immediately report job-related injuries or illnesses. 
• Report any potential workplace hazards. 

Under WISHA, employees have rights, including the right to raise workplace safety and health concerns, refuse to perform risky tasks (if certain criteria are met), and engage with workplace DOSH inspections. Employers can’t retaliate against employees who exercise their WISHA rights. 

Labor Union Regulations

Washington doesn’t have right-to-work laws. This means an employee can be required to join a union or pay union fees as a condition of employment.

Washington employees have the right to form a union. 

The National Labor Relations Act applies to most private workers in Washington, with some exceptions. The National Labor Relations Board hears labor disputes involving these employees. 

Employment Contracts and Severance

Employment Contract Laws

Employment in Washington is at-will unless an employment contract or collective bargaining agreement states otherwise. This means employers and employees can terminate their employment at any time and for any reason, as long as it’s not unlawful. 

Employers can’t prohibit employees from disclosing their wages as a condition of employment. 

For a non-compete agreement to be enforceable in Washington, it must meet specific criteria. For non-competes to be enforceable, employees and independent contractors must meet income thresholds, which are adjusted each year for inflation. As of January 1, 2024, these thresholds are set at $120,559.99 annually for employees and $301,399.98 annually for independent contractors. 

Non-competes longer than 18 months are generally unenforceable. 

Non-solicitation agreements can apply only to the current customers of a business. 

Severance Pay

Severance pay isn’t required in Washington. Employers may offer it under the terms of an employment contract or collective bargaining agreement. 

Additional Laws That Might Apply to You

Lactation accommodations	Employers with 15 or more employees must make reasonable accommodations for workers who need to express milk. Accommodations include breaks and a private location other than a bathroom. The only exception is where the accommodation would cause undue hardship to the employer.
Wage history	Employers can’t ask candidates or other employers for their wage histories unless the employees voluntarily provide this information or the employers have already made job offers that include compensation.
Pay transparency	Employers with at least 15 employees must include salary ranges or wage scales in job advertisements.
Criminal history	Employers can’t inquire about candidates’ criminal histories until they’ve decided those candidates are otherwise qualified for the roles (with exceptions for certain roles and duties). It’s illegal to advertise a role in a way that prevents people with criminal histories from applying.
Employee Free Choice Act	From June 6, 2024, employees can’t make employees attend meetings to communicate the employer’s religious or political opinions, including opinions regarding labor associations. There are some limited exceptions, such as religious corporations.

COVID-19 Related Laws and Regulations

Some COVID-19 health and safety regulations remain in place in Washington. 

Navigating Legal Issues and Resources

The Washington Department of Labor and Industries website is a good place to start when navigating the state’s labor laws. This site has extensive information for both employers and workers. 

The state government’s Small Business Guide includes labor law guidance for employers.

Workers seeking free employment law information can refer to:

• The Workers’ Rights Manual from the Washington Labor Education and Research Center.
• The Fair Work Center.
• The Washington Lawyers’ Committee Workers’ Rights Clinic.

Disclaimer

The information presented on this website about labor laws in Washington is a summary for informational purposes only and is not intended as legal advice. Laws and regulations regularly change and may vary depending on individual circumstances. While we have made every effort to ensure the information provided is up to date and reliable, we cannot guarantee its completeness, accuracy, or applicability to your specific situation. Therefore, we strongly recommend that readers seek guidance from their legal departments or qualified attorneys to ensure compliance with applicable laws and regulations. Please note that we cannot be held liable for any actions taken or not taken based on the information presented on this website.