For Immediate Release
Contact: Cynthia Santana/Communications Manager 206-256-5219 cynthia.santana@seattle.gov
Amendments to Seattle’s Paid Sick and Safe Time Ordinance are in effect
Seattle – (January 16, 2018) – The Office of Labor Standards (OLS) announces the amendments to Seattle’s Paid Sick and Safe Time Ordinance (PSST) are officially in effect. City Council passed and Mayor Jenny A. Durkan signed the law amending PSST in December 2017. The changes took effect January 14, 2018.
These PSST amendments incorporate the more generous provisions of voter-passed, Washington Initiative 1433 establishing statewide paid sick leave (RCW 49.46) into Seattle’s PSST Ordinance (SMC 14.16). Under state law, the 1433 provisions automatically apply to hourly employees working in Seattle and throughout Washington state. Under Seattle’s PSST amendments, the 1433 provisions apply equally to hourly employees and overtime-exempt employees working in Seattle (with a few limited exceptions). Since Seattle’s PSST has always applied to hourly and overtime-exempt employees, the amended ordinance maintains this broad employee coverage.
Examples of Seattle’s PSST amendments include:
- All employers with at least one employee are required to provide PSST to hourly and overtime exempt employees
- No work study exemption
- Family members include children (of any age), siblings, and grandchildren
- No caps on an employee’s use of accrued PSST
Seattle’s PSST amendments also permit time-limited, collective bargaining agreement waivers of Seattle PSST provisions that are more generous than statewide paid sick leave provisions. Such waivers are only permitted until December 31, 2018 or until the expiration of any collective bargaining agreement in existence on December 31, 2018. Any labor organization that seeks to extend their waiver under this provision must file information on the pertinent collective bargaining agreement with the City of Seattle Office of Labor Standards.
You can find more information on the amendments, including informational resources and upcoming training webinars on the OLS 2018 Labor Standards Updates webpage.
All employers operating in Seattle must comply with Seattle’s labor standards regarding Minimum Wage, Paid Sick and Safe Time, Wage Theft, Fair Chance Employment. Other
labor standards for specific employers include Secure Scheduling, and Hotel Employees Health and Safety.
• Help for employers: For free and private compliance assistance with PSST or any Seattle labor standard, or to schedule a training, call 206-256-5297 or email business.laborstandards@seattle.gov, or send us a message through our employer web form.
• Help for workers and the public: To ask a question, file a complaint, or provide information, call 206-256-5297, email workers.laborstandards@seattle.gov, visit the OLS in downtown Seattle at 810 3rd Ave, Suite 375, or send us a message through our employee web form.
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