Employment Law Blog

Vacation Pay Due At Termination?

Seeing this article on how Maryland has enacted a New Law Limiting Payment of Accrued Leave on Termination prompted me to write this post clarifying the state of the law in Washington on this issue.  I get countless calls from indignant employees who are told they will not get paid for accrued but unused vacation when their job ends.  I explain that in Washington, unlike many other states, there is no law requiring employers to compensate employees for accrued but unused vacation (or sick) pay.  However, if the company has a written policy or an historic practice of paying employees for accrued but unused paid time off at time of termination, there is a good legal argument for payment.  It pays to review those company policies and handbooks!

Federal Overtime Calculator

Thanks to New York lawyer Randy L. Braun over at Juz the Fax, for alerting me to the United States Department of Labor’s new online calculator to determine correct payment of overtime, under federal law.  I suspect he is correct that this tool may be used more by employees than employers, but either way it is a helpful site packed with a lot of information in addition to the “calculator.”  Naturally you should also check with state law before making any final determinations about proper payment.  Washington State’s Department of Labor and Industries offers a nice comparison chart regarding Washington and the federal overtime laws.

New Year, New (WA) Minimum Wage

With the new year, Washington state's minimum wage increases to $7.93 per hourfor workers 16 years and older.  Fourteen and fifteen year old workers may be paid 85% of the minimum wage (=$6.74 per hour).  Washington state's Department of Labor and Industries has a good general information website on compliance with wage and hour laws, including a link to the required 2007 Minimum Wage Poster (in English and Spanish).

New Washington State Law Regarding Recovering Wrongfully Withheld Wages

    On March 17, 2006 Governor Christine Gregoire signed into law some significant changes to the law regarding complaints filed with the state Department of Labor and Industries (“L&I”) regarding wrongfully withheld wages.  SB 3185 amends and adds to Chapter 49.48 of the Revised Code of Washington.  Key points:

• It requires L&I to investigate wage claims filed by an employee, and it must issue a determination of some sort within 60 days (with certain exceptions);
• If L&I determines the employer has violated a wage payment requirement, L&I may charge interest of 1%, and if L&I determines that the violation was willful, it may assess a penalty;
• It creates an administrative appeal process for parties to dispute any determination or citation from L&I; and
• It creates collections procedures for L&I to recover any unpaid wages or unpaid penalties by a fined employer.

    I think these are good changes for employees with relatively small claims (less than $5,000), because they are the ones who typically cannot obtain legal representation - the amount due is too small for a contingency fee and to pay by the hour would eat up the recovery.  And often, in my experience, L&I does nothing for them under the old system either.  On the other hand, employees should be aware that if they use this new administrative process they will only recover their unpaid wages - the penalties in this system go to a state fund, not the employee.  In a private court action, an employee may seek to recover up to twice the amount of wrongfully withheld wages plus attorneys’ fees.

Advice for Job Hunters

    I am not sure there are any truly new ideas on how to find a new job - other than the way technology continues to change the ways in which we can find work or apply for jobs.  However, there are a series of good articles in today’s Seattle Post Intelligencer.

    In “Finding a job is hard work, so work hard” the article suggests that job seekers create a set schedule for the hunt and set goals for yourself.   “Do your research and use it when looking for work” stresses the importance of tailoring your application to the employer - throw out those generic, one size fits all cover letters, and when possible tweak your resume to align with the employer’s goals.  “Best to prepare for compensation negotiations” offers advice on how to negotiate your total compensation package - not just the salary, but consider benefits, vacation time, and bonuses.  A good place to start researching the general salary trends in your industry is Salary Center. 

   

The last article also points out that executive level employees should be prepared to negotiate an employment contract.  And, as I firmly reminded a good friend of mine just today, do NOT sign such a contract without taking at least 24 hours to think it over and preferably have an attorney review it.  Many contracts include non competition provisions, and some now include provisions requiring employees to waive their rights to a jury or trial and submit any disputes with their employer to binding arbitration.