New Laws to Impact Workers, Healthcare, Transportation in WA

Several new laws in Washington will take effect in 2025, bringing visible changes across the board, from workers' rights and healthcare to transportation.

Minimum Wage Increase

Beginning January 1, 2025, Washington's minimum wage will increase to $16.66 per hour, a 2.35% increase over the previous year. The raise is designed to ensure that workers in the state's expanding economy keep pace with inflation and maintain purchasing power.

Paid Sick Leave Law (SB 5793)

Beginning January 1, 2025, Washington will expand paid sick leave to more employees, including those working for gig economy companies such as Uber and Lyft. The new law dictates that under the program, employees earn one hour of paid sick leave for every 40 hours worked. Workers would be allowed to use the time for personal illness, family care, or an emergency. Time not used can be carried over, up to 40 hours annually. Employers would have to be transparent about leave balances and can request verification after three days of absence.

App-Based Worker Protections

The Seattle City Council is pushing forward with protecting gig workers through the passage of Bill No. 120580, which will introduce more transparency into deactivations for app-based workers, such as those driving for Uber and Lyft, Particularly. It calls for companies to develop deactivation policies, and workers must be warned at least 14 days in advance when there's any chance of a worker getting deactivated, except in instances related to misconduct. Additionally, workers will have the right to challenge deactivations. This new law applies to companies with 250 or more workers providing services in Seattle.

License Plate Cover Fines

A new law, effective January 1, will impose fines for the use of license plate covers in Washington. The fines follow a series of warnings issued starting in June 2024, aiming to improve vehicle identification and reduce traffic-related issues.

Smoke Evacuation Systems in Healthcare

Washington state has just legislated that all hospitals must utilize a smoke evacuation system when doing surgeries that produce toxic smoke, which includes those surgeries where lasers and power tools are used. There will be reimbursement for all eligible hospitals for the cost of systems purchase and installation to accommodate the requirements to protect healthcare employees and patients.

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Mandatory Overtime Restrictions for Healthcare Workers

Starting January 1, 2025, hospitals in Washington State will no longer be allowed to force certain healthcare workers, such as nurses and surgical technicians, to work overtime except in cases of emergency, on-call time, staffing shortages, or patient care procedures. The penalty for violating this rule could be as much as $5,000 per violation.