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Washington Overtime Laws

Washington Overtime Laws

Washington Overtime Laws: Ensuring Fair Compensation for Employees

Overtime pay is an essential aspect of employment that ensures employees are adequately compensated for the extra time they put in at work. The Washington State overtime laws set forth guidelines on the allocation of overtime pay to employees. This article will delve into the highlights of Washington’s overtime laws, the implications for employers and employees, and possible changes to the laws based on recently proposed legislation.

Understanding Overtime in Washington: An Overview

The purpose of overtime pay is to compensate employees for the additional time they work beyond the standard workweek. Overtime laws in Washington stipulate that nonexempt employees must receive overtime pay for hours worked in excess of 40 hours a week.

The minimum overtime rate in Washington is 1.5 times the regular pay rate. For instance, if an employee earns $20 per hour, their overtime pay for an additional hour of work would be $30 ($20 + $10). In instances where employees work more than 60 hours in a week, they must receive double their regular pay rate for all hours worked beyond the 60th hour.

Exemptions to the Overtime Laws

Not all employees are eligible for overtime pay. Excluded from Washington’s overtime laws are exempt employees who fit into specific categories. Here are some of the exempt employee categories:

– Administrative, executive, and professional employees: These are salaried employees that predominantly perform non-manual work and whose job positions require discretion and independent judgment.
– Computer professionals: These are employees who work in the computer field and earn at least $27.63 per hour.
– Outside salespersons: These are employees whose primary job is to go out and make sales to customers outside the company’s premises.
– Agri employees: These are employees primarily involved in agriculture and obtain at least half their compensation from farming-related work.
– Domestic workers: These are employees working as nannies, cooks, or housekeepers.

Employers must ensure that an employee is exempt before withholding overtime pay from them. However, employees who believe they have been wrongly classified as exempt can contest the classification through the Washington Department of Labor and Industries or file a lawsuit.

Penalties for Non-Compliance

Employers who don’t comply with Washington overtime laws face stiff penalties and fines. The penalties and fines can include criminal liability, back pay, interest, and other forms of damages.

If an employer fails to pay overtime, the employee can file a complaint with the Washington State Department of Labor and Industries. The state agency can also investigate an employer suspected of violating the overtime laws. If the state’s Department of Labor and Industries determines that an employer has violated overtime laws, it can issue the employer with penalties and back pay. The penalty for willful violation of overtime laws can be as high as twice the amount of back pay.

Proposals to Modify and Amend Washington Overtime Laws

In the recent past, numerous proposals for the modification and amendment of Washington’s overtime laws have been put forward. Below are some highlighted proposals:

Updated Salary Minimums for Exempt Employees

In November 2020, the Washington Department of Labor and Industries adopted new rules regarding overtime pay. The new rules stipulated that, starting from July 01, 2021, the minimum salary threshold for exempt employees would increase. The increase mandates that employers who want to exempt employees from overtime pay must pay them at least $35,100 annually or $675 per week.

The Washington State Overtime Rulemaking Plan

The Washington State Overtime Rulemaking Plan is another proposal that suggests modifications and amendments to Washington’s overtime laws. The proposed plan seeks to increase the salary threshold for exempt employees to $83,355 annually for workers in the Seattle area and to $69,828 annually for workers in the remainder of the state.

The plan also proposes automatic future increases tied to the Consumer Price Index for WA Region (CPI-W). Additionally, the plan suggests the establishment of a work schedule requirement that caps the number of hours worked by salaried exempt employees to 40 hours per week. Finally, the proposal suggests that employers give an updated written notice of job status every twelve months for employees earning below the salary threshold.

The current state of the overtime rulemaking plan is that the Washington State Department of Labor and Industries (L&I) is reviewing feedback received during the public comment period that closed on June 21, 2021. The L&I has clarified that the final revisions to the overtime rules will be made in October 2021, and the rules will go into effect on January 1, 2022.

Impact of Proposed Changes on Employers and Employees

The proposed changes to Washington’s overtime laws have significant implications on employers and employees. One of the significant implications of the proposed changes is that overtime exemptions will affect more employees; hence, more employers will need to pay overtime wages to properly classified employees.

For employers, the proposed modifications will mean stricter enforcement of overtime regulations, specifically, the minimum salary thresholds for exempt employees. These changes will significantly affect the financial planning of many employers and small business owners in the state. However, employers will still have the ability to avoid overtime costs by setting the appropriate work schedule and vetting the appropriate employee classifications.

For employees, the proposed modifications will mean better compensation and working hours. The primary objective of the proposed modifications is to ensure that employees are compensated fairly for their overtime hours while ensuring that they don’t work too many hours in a week.

Conclusion

Overtime laws play a fundamental role in ensuring that employees are adequately compensated for their extra work hours. Washington’s overtime laws stipulate that all non-exempt employees who work more than 40 hours per week must receive overtime pay at 1.5 times their regular pay rate.

Proposed modifications and amendments to Washington’s overtime laws seek to increase the salary threshold for the exempt and add work schedule limitations. To a significant extent, these changes will offer protection to employees and provide employers with proper directives and guidance for obeying the state’s overtime laws. The new rules go into effect on January 1, 2022, and employers must comply with the updated rules to avoid potential legal sanctions and penalties.


What are Washington Overtime Laws?

In the state of Washington, the majority of workers who receive an hourly wage and work over 40 hours in a 7-day work week must be provided with overtime compensation. When providing overtime compensation, an employer must pay at least 1.5 times the workers’ regularly hourly wage. Washington overtime laws are based on the number of hours worked in a seven-day work week; the number of hours worked in a single day does not factor into the overtime calculation.

Additionally, Washington overtime laws declare that employers may force their employees to work any number of hours in a given 40 hour week; limitations are placed on workers under the age of 18. But of course remember, that any number of hours worked beyond 40, must be compensated at 1.5 times the worker’s normal hourly rate.

Washington overtime laws make it mandatory that an employer pay an employee—described above—1.5 times their hourly wage. This applies to all hourly earners, with the exception of the following list:

Workers who are not protected by Washington Overtime Laws:

• WA overtime laws do not protect workers employed on ranches or farms

• WA overtime laws do not protect Seasonal employees at agricultural centers or fairs

• WA overtime laws do not protect Newspaper carriers or vendors

• WA overtime laws do not protect Casual labor in or about private dwellings

• WA overtime laws do not protect Fire Prevention and Fire Protection activities

• WA overtime laws do not protect Any person whose duties require that the individual resides or sleeps at the place of his or her place of work

• WA overtime laws do not protect Seaman

• WA overtime laws Vessel Operating Crews

• WA overtime laws do not protect Inmates, patients or residents of any county, municipal or state correctional rehab institution or detention center

• WA overtime law does not institute protections for Youth Camps with Child Care Centers

• WA overtime law does not institute protections Administrative, Executive, Computer Professional and Outside Sales

• WA overtime law does not institute protections Volunteers

• WA overtime law does not institute protections Elected or appointive offices

Washington Overtime Laws Regarding Breaks:

Washington overtime laws permit workers to request time off at a later date instead of being paid overtime wages in said paid periods. This is referred to as “exchange time” or “comp time.” When the employee takes his/her time off, payment must be paid at the rate of at least an hour and one-half for each overtime hour worked. The exchange hours; however, may be paid at the regular rate. It must be noted; however, that federal law does not permit these types of agreements except for public workers and their employees.

To be exempt—according to Washington Overtime Laws—as an executive employee, an individual must:

• Regularly direct the work of multiple (two or more) full-time employees

• Have management as his/her primary job function

• Possess the authority to hire and terminate or recommended said action or other changes in an employee’s working status

• Be compensated on a salary basis

• Spend no more than 1/5th of their time in activities not closely related to any of the above duties or 40% in a service or retail establishment

To be exempt—according to Washington Overtime Laws—as an Administrative Employee, a person must:

• Possess as their “primary duty” the following:

o Non-manual or office work related to management policies or traditional business operations

o Performing work in an educational administration function, aka work directly related to training or academic instruction

• Regularly exercise independent judgment and discretion

• Directly assist bona fide executives or other administrative employees

• Perform general supervision work that is technical or specialized that requires special training, knowledge or experience

• Perform special assignments under only general supervision

To be exempt as a Professional Employee—according to Washington Overtime Laws—one must:

• Have his/her primary duties include :

o Advanced knowledge typically requiring extensive education

o Creativity in a recognized artistic field

o Teaching imparting knowledge as a formal professor or teacher in an academic institution

o Practical application of highly specialized knowledge in computer platforms, programming, software engineering etc.

• Constantly exercises discretion and judgment

• Performs work that is predominantly eclectic and intellectual and which cannot be standardized in relation to a given time frame

• Spend no more than 20% of working hours—during a typical work week—in activities viewed as non-essential to the above duties

• Compensated on a “salary basis”

For a complete list of Washington overtime laws, please visit this page: