Washington Labor Guidance
Free plain-English summaries of opinion letters, administrative policies, and interpretive notices from Washington's labor agency, with the current status and the official source on every page.
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Equal Pay and Opportunities Act
This L&I administrative policy explains Washington's Equal Pay and Opportunities Act: the duty to pay "similarly employed" workers equally regardless of gender or protected-class membership (with perm…
Paid Sick Leave - Frequently Asked Questions
This L&I administrative policy answers frequently asked questions about Washington's paid sick leave law: who is covered, how leave accrues (1 hour per 40 hours worked) and carries over, when and how …
Meal & Rest Break Protections for Certain Healthcare Workers
This L&I administrative policy explains additional meal and rest break protections for certain hospital employees beyond Washington's general break rules: who is covered, uninterrupted-break requireme…
Employee Access to Personnel File
This L&I administrative policy explains employees' and former employees' right under RCW 49.12.240 to review and receive a free copy of their personnel file within 21 days of a request, what records c…
Recordkeeping and Access to Payroll Records (Non-agricultural Employment)
This L&I administrative policy explains non-agricultural employers' payroll recordkeeping duties under the Industrial Welfare Act and Minimum Wage Act: what records must be kept (names, addresses, pay…
Minimum Wage Act Applicability
This L&I administrative policy explains who is covered by Washington's Minimum Wage Act (RCW 49.46): which employers must comply, the 17 categories of workers the statute exempts by name (casual labor…
School Week and Work Week for Minors
This L&I administrative policy sets out the maximum hours and permitted start/end times minors may work in Washington, in both non-agricultural and agricultural jobs, broken down by age group (12-13, …
Industrial Welfare Act: Applications, Exemptions, and Interpretations
This L&I administrative policy is the department's general reference on the Industrial Welfare Act (RCW 49.12), which governs conditions of labor — minor employment, meal and rest periods, personnel-f…
Overtime
This L&I administrative policy explains Washington's overtime rules under the Minimum Wage Act: the requirement to pay 1.5x the regular rate for hours over 40 in a workweek, how to calculate the "regu…
Collective Bargaining Agreements, Employment Agreements, and Policies
This L&I administrative policy explains how collective bargaining agreements (CBAs) and other written employment agreements interact with the Minimum Wage Act and Industrial Welfare Act: a CBA can exc…
Waiving of Rights Under Minimum Wage Act Prohibited and More Favorable Laws Allowed
This L&I administrative policy explains that employees cannot agree, individually or collectively, to be paid less than the Minimum Wage Act requires — such agreements are unlawful and provide no defe…
Minimum Hourly Wage
This L&I administrative policy explains Washington's minimum hourly wage: the annual CPI-based adjustment process, that 16- and 17-year-olds must be paid the full adult rate while minors under 16 may …
Agricultural Labor Standards — Meal Periods, Rest Periods, and Rates of Pay
This L&I administrative policy covers pay, meal-period, and rest-period rules specific to Washington agricultural employees, including dairy workers. It distinguishes "piece-rate active time" (paid at…
Recordkeeping and Access to Payroll Records (Agricultural Employment)
This L&I administrative policy sets recordkeeping duties for agricultural employers: names, addresses, occupations, pay rates (including separate piece-rate active/down time and rest-period rates), am…
Hours Worked
This L&I administrative policy defines "hours worked" as time an employee is authorized/required to be on duty on the employer's premises or a prescribed workplace, and applies that three-part test ac…
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These are official interpretive documents from Washington's labor agency: opinion letters answering questions from employers and workers, administrative policies, and interpretive notices. They show how the agency applies wage-and-hour and workplace law to real situations, but they are guidance, not statutes or court decisions, and the agency can supersede or withdraw them. Every page above shows the document's current status, when that status was last verified, and a link to the official source.