The Washington Labor Law Guide

The minimum wage is the lowest hourly rate an employer can legally pay non-exempt employees. Under Washington law, the state minimum wage is adjusted annually for inflation based on the Consumer Price Index.

Municipal minimum wage ordinances

Washington allows cities and counties to pass local minimum wage ordinances that supersede the state baseline. If an employee performs work in a jurisdiction with a higher local minimum wage, the employer must pay the higher rate. Employers should verify their geographic operating zones against the following 2026 local rates:

• Bellingham: $19.13 per hour (Bellingham law permanently sets its rate at exactly $2.00 above the state minimum wage).
• Burien: $21.78 per hour for large employers (501 or more employees); $20.78 per hour for medium employers (16 to 500 employees); $19.28 per hour for small employers (15 or fewer employees). These are the 2026 rates as adjusted by the City of Burien on June 4, 2026, under BMC Chapter 5.16.
• Everett: $20.77 per hour for large employers (500 or more employees worldwide); $19.77 per hour for mid-size employers (15 to 499 employees, or more than $2M in revenue).
• King County (unincorporated): $20.82 per hour for large employers (500 or more employees); $19.82 per hour for mid-size employers (16 to 499 employees), and for small employers (15 or fewer employees) with $2M or more in annual gross revenue; $18.32 per hour for small employers with less than $2M in revenue.
• Renton: $21.57 per hour for large employers (more than 500 employees worldwide); $21.57 per hour for mid-size employers (15 to 500 employees worldwide, or more than $2M in annual gross revenue in Renton). Mid-size employers moved from $20.57 to the large-employer rate on July 1, 2026.
• Seattle: $21.30 per hour (previous small-employer exemptions have expired, so this rate now applies to all covered employers).
• SeaTac: $20.74 per hour (applies specifically to covered hospitality and transportation industry workers).
• Tukwila: $21.65 per hour for all covered employers (previous mid-size employer tier phase-ins are complete).

Tipped employees and tip credits

Washington is a strict no-tip-credit state. Employers must pay all employees the full state or municipal minimum wage (whichever is higher) for all hours worked. An employer cannot legally use tips to offset a minimum wage obligation, so tips are entirely in addition to standard hourly pay. All tips must be paid directly to employees, and an employer may not retain any portion of an employee's tips for company use.

Mandatory service charges

If an employer uses a mandatory service charge instead of standard tipping, strict disclosure rules apply. Employers must clearly disclose on both menus and receipts what specific percentage of the service charge is paid directly to the employee providing the service. If the employer fails to provide this disclosure, or if the disclosure is unclear, the employer is legally required to pay 100% of the service charge to the employee. Like standard tips, any portion of a service charge paid to an employee cannot be counted toward their hourly minimum wage.

In Washington, employers of all sizes must pay non-exempt employees overtime at a rate of at least 1.5 times their regular rate of pay for all hours worked over 40 in a single workweek.

Overtime must be calculated on a strict 7-day workweek. Employers cannot average hours over a two-week pay period to avoid overtime obligations.

Mandatory meal periods

Washington wage and hour laws require employers to provide non-exempt employees with a meal period of no less than 30 minutes if their shift exceeds five consecutive hours. This meal period must start no earlier than the second hour of the shift and no later than the fifth hour.

Second meal periods for extended shifts

If an employee is scheduled to work three or more hours longer than their normal workday, the employer must provide an additional 30-minute meal period. This second meal break must occur either prior to or during the extended or overtime portion of the shift.

Meal period compensation

Meal breaks may be unpaid if the employee is completely relieved of all work duties and is free to leave the immediate workstation. The 30-minute break must be paid as regular hours worked if the employee:

• Is required to remain on duty.
• Is required to remain on-call on the premises.
• Is interrupted and called back to work before the 30 minutes have elapsed.

Paid rest breaks

Employers must provide a paid 10-minute rest break for every four hours of working time. This rest break must be scheduled as close to the midpoint of the four-hour work block as possible. An employee cannot be legally required to work more than three consecutive hours without receiving a rest break.

Intermittent rest breaks

If the specific nature of the work provides constant, natural lulls (for example, a receptionist waiting for calls), the employer may use intermittent rest breaks. Under this exception, the employee does not need a strictly scheduled 10-minute absence, provided their brief, paid respites from active duties total at least 10 minutes for every four hours worked.

Waivers and attestations

• Meal breaks: employees may voluntarily agree to waive their unpaid 30-minute meal period. Employers should use written agreements or digital attestations to document this mutual waiver.
• Rest breaks: paid 10-minute rest breaks cannot be waived under any circumstances. An employee cannot legally volunteer to skip a rest break, and an employer cannot accept such a waiver.

Vacation leave

Washington law does not require private employers to provide paid or unpaid vacation leave, nor does it mandate bereavement leave. However, if an employer voluntarily chooses to offer paid vacation, the terms of that benefit become a legally enforceable agreement.

Washington Paid Sick Leave (WPSL)

Washington requires employers of all sizes to provide paid sick leave to most employees, including full-time, part-time, temporary, and seasonal workers.

• Accrual and usage: employees must accrue at least one hour of paid sick leave for every 40 hours worked. Accrual begins on the employee's first day of work. However, employers may set a waiting period of up to 90 calendar days following the hire date before an employee is permitted to use accrued leave.
• Carryover limits: at the end of the accrual year, employers are legally required to carry over up to 40 hours of an employee's unused paid sick leave to the following year.
• Expanded usage and definitions: Washington law broadly defines valid reasons for using paid sick leave, including the closure of an employee's child's school or place of care due to a declared emergency. The legal definition of a family member includes any person who regularly resides in the employee's home with an expectation of care, or a person who has a relationship with the employee that creates an expectation of care.
• Termination payouts and the construction exception: standard employers are not required to pay out accrued, unused sick leave upon separation. However, employers in the construction industry (NAICS 23) must legally pay out accrued sick leave to any worker who separates before reaching the 90-day usage threshold.
• Exemptions: specific classifications are exempt from the WPSL mandate, including doctors, lawyers, dentists, casual laborers in private homes, outside sales representatives, and white-collar professionals (executive, administrative, or professional) who meet the state's strict minimum salary threshold.

Holidays

Washington does not legally require private employers to provide paid or unpaid time off for recognized holidays, nor does it mandate that businesses close on any specific holiday. Private employers are not required to pay premium rates (such as time-and-a-half) to employees who work on a holiday, unless those hours push the employee's total over 40 in a single workweek and trigger standard overtime. If an employer establishes a policy to provide premium holiday pay, it must be honored as a legally enforceable wage agreement.

Washington child labor laws strictly regulate the hours, occupations, and safety of minors under 18. Employers must adhere to the following mandates:

• Permits and authorizations: before scheduling a minor, an employer must possess a Minor Work Permit endorsement on their Washington State Business License. The employer must also have a completed, signed Parent/School Authorization Form on file for each minor.
• Under age 14: minors under 14 are generally prohibited from working unless the employer obtains an explicit order granting permission from a county superior court. Exceptions: 12- and 13-year-olds may work in agriculture without court permission only during non-school weeks, and only to hand-harvest berries, bulbs, cucumbers, and spinach.

Mandatory meal and rest breaks for minors

• Ages 14 and 15: must be provided a 30-minute uninterrupted meal period before working 4 consecutive hours. They must also receive a paid 10-minute rest break for every 2 hours worked.
• Ages 16 and 17: must be provided a 30-minute uninterrupted meal period before working 5 consecutive hours. They must receive a paid 10-minute rest break for every 4 hours worked, and cannot be scheduled to work more than 3 consecutive hours without receiving a rest break.

Permitted hours of work (non-agricultural)

Maximum daily hours, weekly hours, and shift curfews depend on the minor's age and whether the local school district is currently in session.

Ages 14-15:

• School week: 3 hours per day (Monday to Friday); 8 hours per day (Saturday, Sunday, and holidays); 16 hours per week; up to 6 days; 7:00 AM to 7:00 PM.
• Non-school week: 8 hours per day; 40 hours per week; up to 6 days; 7:00 AM to 7:00 PM (extends to 9:00 PM from June 1 to Labor Day).

Ages 16-17:

• School week: 4 hours per day (Sunday to Thursday); 8 hours per day (Friday, Saturday, and pre-holidays); 20 hours per week; up to 6 days; 7:00 AM to 10:00 PM (extends to midnight on Friday, Saturday, and pre-holidays).
• School week with a special variance: 6 hours per day (Sunday to Thursday); 8 hours per day (Friday, Saturday, and pre-holidays); 28 hours per week; up to 6 days; 7:00 AM to 10:00 PM (extends to midnight on Friday, Saturday, and pre-holidays).
• Non-school week: 8 hours per day; 48 hours per week; up to 6 days; 5:00 AM to midnight.

Statutory exceptions to hour restrictions

• Emancipated minors: 16- and 17-year-olds who are married, are parents, or have been legally emancipated are exempt from the minor scheduling limitations and may be scheduled as adults.
• CTE program expansion: 16- and 17-year-olds officially enrolled in an approved Career and Technical Education (CTE) or college program may legally work non-school week hours year-round, provided the work is for an approved participating employer. This took effect July 1, 2026.

Washington statewide scheduling laws

Washington does not have a comprehensive statewide predictive scheduling or fair workweek law. Generally, outside of specific municipalities, employers may change an employee's schedule without advance notice. However, healthcare staffing employers must comply with strict exceptions: Washington legally prohibits health care facilities from scheduling mandatory overtime for certain clinical employees (such as RNs and CNAs), except in unforeseeable, legally defined emergencies.

Seattle Secure Scheduling Ordinance (SSO)

The City of Seattle enforces strict scheduling protections for employees working in specific retail and food service sectors.

Covered employers: the SSO applies to retail and food service establishments with 500 or more employees worldwide. Full-service restaurants are only covered if they meet the 500-or-more employee threshold and operate 40 or more full-service locations worldwide.

Under the Seattle SSO, covered employers must enforce the following mandates:

• Advance notice: employers must provide employees with a written work schedule at least 14 days in advance.
• Right to rest (clopening ban): employers must provide at least 10 hours of rest between a closing shift and an opening shift. If an employee agrees to work with less than 10 hours of rest, the employer must pay a premium of time-and-a-half (1.5 times) for the hours separated by less than the 10-hour window.
• Good faith estimates: employers must provide a written good faith estimate of the median hours an employee can expect to work upon hire, annually, and whenever there is a significant change to the employee's schedule.
• Access to hours: before hiring external applicants, subcontractors, or temporary agency workers, employers must post notice of available hours for three days and offer those additional hours to qualified internal employees.
• Interactive process: employees have a protected right to request schedule preferences on times and locations. Employers must engage in an interactive process, and must grant schedule requests related to a major life event (for example, caregiving, housing, education, or another job) unless there is a bona fide business reason for denial.

Predictability pay (premium pay for schedule changes)

If an employer changes a posted schedule within the 14-day window, they must issue predictability pay:

• Added hours or changed times: employees must receive one hour of additional pay at their regular scheduled rate if hours are added to a shift, or if the shift date or time is changed with no loss of hours.
• Subtracted hours: employees must receive half-time pay (50% of their regular rate) for any scheduled hours they do not work if they are sent home early, their hours are reduced, or they are scheduled for an on-call shift but are not called in.

Exemptions from predictability pay

Employers are legally exempt from paying predictability pay in specific, documentable scenarios:

• Grace period: schedule additions or reductions of less than 15 minutes.
• Employee requests and swaps: the employee explicitly requests the schedule change in writing, or voluntarily swaps shifts with another employee.
• Mass communications: an employee voluntarily accepts additional hours in response to a written mass communication (sent to two or more employees) asking for coverage due to unanticipated customer needs or another employee's inability to work.
• Disciplinary suspensions: hours subtracted due to documented disciplinary action.
• Operations cannot begin or continue: changes caused by threats to safety, natural disasters, failure of public utilities, or the explicit recommendation or order of a public official.