Beginning June 7, 2018, Washington State House Bill 1506 (RCW 49.12.175) takes effect, which means some potentially big changes for Washington employers. The law, otherwise known at the Washington’s equal pay act, is designed to achieve gender pay equality.
Washington’s equal pay act has not been updated since 1943. Now, the law provides not only requirements of gender pay equality but also penalties if employers fail to follow the law.
The law requires that employees who are similarly employed to receive equal pay. The law states that “employees are similarly employed if the individuals work for the same employer, the performance of the job requires similar skill, effort, and responsibility, and the jobs are performed under similar working conditions. Job titles alone are not determinative of whether employees are similarly employed.”
The law states that an employer may not: (1) “require nondisclosure by an employee of his or her wages as a condition of employment,” (2) “require an employee to sign a waiver or other document that prevents the employee from disclosing the amount of the employee's wages,” or (3) “discharge or in any other manner retaliate against an employee” for specified conduct.
However, “discrimination within the meaning of this section does not include a differential in compensation based in good faith on a bona fide job-related factor or factors” that the law outlines.
If an employee files a complaint with the Department of Labor and Industries, L&I must investigate to determine if the employer violated the law. If L&I then finds a violation, it is required to attempt to resolve the violation by a conference and conciliation. L&I also has the authority to issue a citation and notice of assessment and order penalties and legal fees against the employer.
It is a separate violation for each employee affected by the discrimination. Civil penalties for the first violation may not exceed $500, but subsequent violations “may not exceed one thousand dollars or ten percent of the damages, whichever is greater.”
Additionally, the employee may file a separate civil lawsuit against the employer for a violation of the law.
At Northwest Corporate Counsel, we always work with our business clients to keep their costs down, to establish a budget, and to give them the best service without the billable hour quotas of larger law firms. If we can help your business, just let us know. Give us a call at 509-710-1914 or email us at David@NWCorporateCounsel.com and let us know how we can help.
Disclaimer: The content of this website is intended to convey general information. It should not be relied upon as legal advice. It is not an offer to represent you, nor is it intended to create an attorney-client relationship. We do invite you to contact us; however, please do not send any confidential information until we have confirmed an attorney-client privilege has been established.