Labor standards

AN ACT Relating to strengthening Washington's labor standards and 1
minimum wage act; amending RCW 49.46.010, 49.46.020, 49.46.180, 2
49.46.200, and 49.46.300; reenacting and amending RCW 49.46.210; 3
adding new sections to chapter 49.46 RCW; prescribing penalties; and 4
providing an effective date. 5
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:6
Sec. 1. RCW 49.46.010 and 2024 c 132 s 1 are each amended to 7
read as follows: 8
As used in this chapter: 9
(1) "Department" means the department of labor and industries;10
(2) "Director" means the director of labor and industries or the 11
director's authorized representative; 12
(((2))) (3) "Employ" includes to permit to work;13
(((3))) (4) "Employee" includes any individual employed by an 14
employer but shall not include: 15
(a) Any individual (i) employed as a hand harvest laborer and 16
paid on a piece rate basis in an operation which has been, and is 17
generally and customarily recognized as having been, paid on a piece 18
rate basis in the region of employment; (ii) who commutes daily from 19
((his or her )) the individual's permanent residence to the farm on 20
which ((he or she )) the individual is employed; and (iii) who has 21
H-0368.1
HOUSE BILL 1181
State of Washington 69th Legislature 2025 Regular Session
By Representatives Mena, Berry, Reed, Macri, Obras, Farivar, Fosse,
Simmons, Pollet, Ormsby, and Hill
Prefiled 01/07/25. Read first time 01/13/25. Referred to Committee
on Labor & Workplace Standards.
p. 1 HB 1181
been employed in agriculture less than ((thirteen)) 13 weeks during 1
the preceding calendar year; 2
(b) Any individual employed in casual labor in or about a private 3
home, unless performed in the course of the employer's trade, 4
business, or profession; 5
(c) Any individual employed in a bona fide executive, 6
administrative, or professional capacity or in the capacity of 7
outside salesperson as those terms are defined and delimited by rules 8
of the director. However, those terms shall be defined and delimited 9
by the human resources director pursuant to chapter 41.06 RCW for 10
employees employed under the director of personnel's jurisdiction;11
(d) Any individual engaged in the activities of an educational, 12
charitable, religious, state or local governmental body or agency, or 13
nonprofit organization where the employer-employee relationship does 14
not in fact exist or where the services are rendered to such 15
organizations gratuitously. If the individual receives reimbursement 16
in lieu of compensation for normally incurred out-of-pocket expenses 17
or receives a nominal amount of compensation per unit of voluntary 18
service rendered, an employer-employee relationship is deemed not to 19
exist for the purpose of this section or for purposes of membership 20
or qualification in any state, local government, or publicly 21
supported retirement system other than that provided under chapter 22
41.24 RCW; 23
(e) Any individual employed full time by any state or local 24
governmental body or agency who provides voluntary services but only 25
with regard to the provision of the voluntary services. The voluntary 26
services and any compensation therefor shall not affect or add to 27
qualification, entitlement, or benefit rights under any state, local 28
government, or publicly supported retirement system other than that 29
provided under chapter 41.24 RCW; 30
(f) Any newspaper vendor, carrier, or delivery person selling or 31
distributing newspapers on the street, to offices, to businesses, or 32
from house to house and any freelance news correspondent or 33
"stringer" who, using his or her own equipment, chooses to submit 34
material for publication for free or a fee when such material is 35
published; 36
(g) Any carrier subject to regulation by Part 1 of the Interstate 37
Commerce Act; 38
(h) Any individual engaged in forest protection and fire 39
prevention activities; 40
p. 2 HB 1181
(i) Any individual employed by any charitable institution charged 1
with child care responsibilities engaged primarily in the development 2
of character or citizenship or promoting health or physical fitness 3
or providing or sponsoring recreational opportunities or facilities 4
for young people or members of the armed forces of the United States;5
(j) Any individual whose duties require that ((he or she )) the 6
individual reside or sleep at the place of ((his or her )) the 7
individual's employment or who otherwise spends a substantial portion 8
of ((his or her)) the individual's work time subject to call, and not 9
engaged in the performance of active duties; 10
(k) Any resident, inmate, or patient of a state, county, or 11
municipal correctional, detention, treatment or rehabilitative 12
institution; 13
(l) Any individual who holds a public elective or appointive 14
office of the state, any county, city, town, municipal corporation or 15
quasi municipal corporation, political subdivision, or any 16
instrumentality thereof, or any employee of the state legislature;17
(m) All vessel operating crews of the Washington state ferries 18
operated by the department of transportation; 19
(n) Any individual employed as a seaman on a vessel other than an 20
American vessel; 21
(o) Any farm intern providing ((his or her )) the farm intern's 22
services to a small farm which has a special certificate issued under 23
RCW 49.12.471; 24
(p) An individual who is at least 16 years old but under 25
((twenty-one)) 21 years old, in ((his or her )) the individual's 26
capacity as a player for a junior ice hockey team that is a member of 27
a regional, national, or international league and that contracts with 28
an arena owned, operated, or managed by a public facilities district 29
created under chapter 36.100 RCW; or 30
(q) Any individual who has entered into a contract to play 31
baseball at the minor league level and who is compensated pursuant to 32
the terms of a collective bargaining agreement that expressly 33
provides for wages and working conditions; 34
(((4))) (5) "Employer" includes any individual, partnership, 35
association, corporation, business trust, or any person or group of 36
persons acting directly or indirectly in the interest of an employer 37
in relation to an employee; 38
(((5))) (6)(a) "Family member" means a child, grandchild, 39
grandparent, parent, sibling, or spouse of an employee or driver, and 40
p. 3 HB 1181
also includes any individual who regularly resides in the employee or 1
driver's home or where the relationship creates an expectation that 2
the employee or driver care for the person, and that individual 3
depends on the employee or driver for care. "Family member" includes 4
any individual who regularly resides in the employee or driver's 5
home, except that it does not include an individual who simply 6
resides in the same home with no expectation that the employee or 7
driver care for the individual. 8
(b) For the purposes of this subsection, the following 9
definitions apply:10
(i) "Child" means a biological, adopted, or foster child, a 11
stepchild, a child's spouse, or a child to whom the employee or 12
driver stands in loco parentis, is a legal guardian, or is a de facto 13
parent, regardless of age or dependency status.14
(ii) "Grandchild" means a child of the employee or driver's 15
child.16
(iii) "Grandparent" means a parent of the employee or driver's 17
parent.18
(iv) "Parent" means the biological, adoptive, de facto, or foster 19
parent, stepparent, or legal guardian of an employee or driver or the 20
employee or driver's spouse, or an individual who stood in loco 21
parentis to an employee or driver when the employee or driver was a 22
child.23
(v) "Spouse" means a husband or wife, as the case may be, or 24
state registered domestic partner;25
(7) "Occupation" means any occupation, service, trade, business, 26
industry, or branch or group of industries or employment or class of 27
employment in which employees are gainfully employed;28
(((6))) (8) "Retail or service establishment" means an 29
establishment ((seventy-five)) 75 percent of whose annual dollar 30
volume of sales of goods or services, or both, is not for resale and 31
is recognized as retail sales or services in the particular industry;32
(((7))) (9) "Wage" means compensation due to an employee by 33
reason of employment, payable in legal tender of the United States or 34
checks on banks convertible into cash on demand at full face value, 35
subject to such deductions, charges, or allowances as may be 36
permitted by rules of the director. 37
Sec. 2. RCW 49.46.020 and 2019 c 236 s 2 are each amended to 38
read as follows: 39
p. 4 HB 1181
(1)(((a) Beginning January 1, 2017, and until January 1, 2018, 1
every employer shall pay to each of his or her employees who has 2
reached the age of eighteen years wages at a rate of not less than 3
eleven dollars per hour.4
(b) Beginning January 1, 2018, and until January 1, 2019, every 5
employer shall pay to each of his or her employees who has reached 6
the age of eighteen years wages at a rate of not less than eleven 7
dollars and fifty cents per hour.8
(c) Beginning January 1, 2019, and until January 1, 2020, every 9
employer shall pay to each of his or her employees who has reached 10
the age of eighteen years wages at a rate of not less than twelve 11
dollars per hour.12
(d) Beginning January 1, 2020, and until January 1, 2021, every 13
employer shall pay to each of his or her employees who has reached 14
the age of eighteen years wages at a rate of not less than thirteen 15
dollars and fifty cents per hour. )) Every employer shall pay to each 16
of the employer's employees who has reached the age of 18 years wages 17
at a rate of not less than the following during the following dates:18
19 Dates: Rate per hour:
20
21
Beginning January 1, 2026,
until January 1, 2027
$17.50
22
23
Beginning January 1, 2027,
until January 1, 2028
$19.00
24
25
Beginning January 1, 2028,
until January 1, 2029
$20.50
26
27
Beginning January 1, 2029,
until January 1, 2030
$22.00
28
29
Beginning January 1, 2030,
until January 1, 2031
$23.50
30
31
Beginning January 1, 2031,
until January 1, 2032
$25.00
(2)(a) Beginning on January 1, ((2021)) 2032, and each following 32
January 1st as set forth under (b) of this subsection, every employer 33
shall pay to each of ((his or her )) the employer's employees who has 34
reached the age of ((eighteen)) 18 years wages at a rate of not less 35
than the amount established under (b) of this subsection.36
p. 5 HB 1181
(b) On September 30, ((2020)) 2031, and on each following 1
September 30th, the department ((of labor and industries )) shall 2
calculate an adjusted minimum wage rate to maintain employee 3
purchasing power by increasing the current year's minimum wage rate 4
by the rate of inflation. The adjusted minimum wage rate shall be 5
calculated to the nearest cent using the consumer price index for 6
urban wage earners and clerical workers, CPI-W, or a successor index, 7
for the ((twelve)) 12 months prior to each September 1st as 8
calculated by the United States department of labor. Each adjusted 9
minimum wage rate calculated under this subsection (2)(b) takes 10
effect on the following January 1st. 11
(3) ((An)) Regardless of whether a local government establishes a 12
minimum wage rate that is higher than required under this chapter, an 13
employer must pay to its employees: (a) All tips and gratuities; and 14
(b) all service charges as defined under RCW 49.46.160 except those 15
that, pursuant to RCW 49.46.160, are itemized as not being payable to 16
the employee or employees servicing the customer. Tips and service 17
charges paid to an employee are in addition to, and may not count 18
towards, the employee's hourly minimum wage required by this section 19
or a local government. 20
(4) Beginning January 1, 2018, except as provided in RCW 21
49.46.180, every employer must provide to each of its employees paid 22
sick leave as provided in RCW 49.46.200 and 49.46.210.23
(5) Beginning January 1, 2027, except as provided in RCW 24
49.46.180 as amended by chapter . . ., Laws of 2025 (this act), every 25
employer must provide to each of its employees paid vacation leave as 26
provided in section 7 of this act.27
(6) Beginning January 1, 2027, except as provided in RCW 28
49.46.180 as amended by chapter . . ., Laws of 2025 (this act), every 29
employer must provide to each of its employees paid bereavement leave 30
as provided in section 8 of this act.31
(7) The director shall by regulation establish the minimum wage 32
for employees under the age of ((eighteen)) 18 years.33
NEW SECTION. Sec. 3. A new section is added to chapter 49.46 34
RCW to read as follows: 35
(1) If the director determines that an employer has violated this 36
act, the department may issue a stop-work order to cease all business 37
operations at every site where the violation has occurred.38
p. 6 HB 1181
(2) Employers must pay employees normal hourly compensation for 1
all hours they would have been regularly scheduled to work during the 2
stop-work period. This requirement is a wage payment requirement 3
under RCW 49.48.082. 4
(3) A stop-work order issued under this section remains in effect 5
until the director issues an order releasing the stop-work order upon 6
finding that the employer has paid any amounts owed to the employees, 7
including interest, and any penalties due. 8
(4) As a condition for release from a stop-work order, the 9
director may require the employer to file with the department 10
periodic reports for a probationary period that demonstrate the 11
employer's continued compliance with the provisions of this act. Any 12
probationary period may not exceed two years. 13
(5)(a) The director may assess a civil penalty of not more than 14
$5,000 per day against an employer for each day that the employer 15
conducts business operations that violate the stop-work order.16
(b) The department may adopt by rule penalty amounts under this 17
subsection that vary by the size of the employer. 18
(c) On September 30, 2028, and on each following September 30th, 19
the department of labor and industries shall calculate adjusted 20
penalties payable pursuant to this section by increasing the current 21
year's penalties by the rate of inflation. The penalties must be 22
calculated to the nearest cent using the consumer price index for 23
urban wage earners and clerical workers, CPI-W, or a successor index, 24
for the 12 months prior to each September 1st as calculated by the 25
United States department of labor. The adjusted penalties calculated 26
under this subsection (5)(c) take effect on the following January 27
1st. 28
(6) An employer may contest a stop-work order within 72 hours of 29
the issuance of the stop-work order by filing a petition for judicial 30
review to superior court. Upon the filing of any such petition, the 31
superior courts of the state of Washington have jurisdiction to issue 32
a temporary stay of the stop-work order pending further agency 33
action. The court may not grant a temporary stay unless the employer 34
meets its burden to show such a stay is appropriate under RCW 35
34.05.550. 36
Sec. 4. RCW 49.46.180 and 2023 c 267 s 2 are each amended to 37
read as follows: 38
p. 7 HB 1181
(1) The ((sick leave provisions of RCW 49.46.200 through 1
49.46.830)) sick, vacation, and bereavement leave provisions of this 2
chapter shall not apply to construction workers covered by a 3
collective bargaining agreement, provided: 4
(a) The union signatory to the collective bargaining agreement is 5
an approved referral union program authorized under RCW 50.20.010 and 6
in compliance with WAC 192-210-110; and 7
(b) The collective bargaining agreement establishes equivalent 8
((sick)) or better sick, vacation, and bereavement leave provisions, 9
as provided in subsection (2) of this section; and10
(c) The requirements of ((RCW 49.46.200 through 49.46.830)) the 11
sick, vacation, and bereavement leave provisions of this chapter are 12
expressly waived in the collective bargaining agreement in clear and 13
unambiguous terms or in an addendum to an existing agreement 14
including an agreement that is open for negotiation provided the sick 15
leave portions were previously ratified by the membership.16
(2) Equivalent ((sick)) leave provisions provided by a collective 17
bargaining agreement must meet the requirements of ((RCW 49.46.200 18
through 49.46.830)) the sick, vacation, and bereavement leave 19
provisions of this chapter and the rules adopted by the department 20
((of labor and industries )), except the payment of leave at the 21
normal hourly compensation may occur before usage and the payment of 22
accrued and unused ((sick)) leave may be made in accordance with RCW 23
49.46.210. 24
Sec. 5. RCW 49.46.200 and 2017 c 2 s 4 are each amended to read 25
as follows: 26
The demands of the workplace and of families need to be balanced 27
to promote public health, individual health, family stability, 28
sustainable working habits, and economic security. It is in the 29
public interest to provide reasonable paid ((sick)) leave for 30
employees to care for the health of themselves and their families. 31
Such paid ((sick)) leave shall be provided at the greater of the 32
newly increased minimum wage or the employee's regular and normal 33
wage. 34
Sec. 6. RCW 49.46.210 and 2024 c 356 s 1 and 2024 c 39 s 1 are 35
each reenacted and amended to read as follows: 36
p. 8 HB 1181
(((1))) Beginning January 1, 2018, except as provided in RCW 1
49.46.180, every employer shall provide each of its employees paid 2
sick leave as follows: 3
(((a))) (1) An employee shall accrue at least one hour of paid 4
sick leave for every ((forty)) 40 hours worked as an employee. An 5
employer may provide paid sick leave in advance of accrual provided 6
that such front-loading meets or exceeds the requirements of this 7
section for accrual, use, and carryover of paid sick leave.8
(((b))) (2) An employee is authorized to use paid sick leave for 9
the following reasons: 10
(((i))) (a) An absence resulting from an employee's mental or 11
physical illness, injury, or health condition; to accommodate the 12
employee's need for medical diagnosis, care, or treatment of a mental 13
or physical illness, injury, or health condition; or an employee's 14
need for preventive medical care; 15
(((ii))) (b) To allow the employee to provide care for a family 16
member with a mental or physical illness, injury, or health 17
condition; care of a family member who needs medical diagnosis, care, 18
or treatment of a mental or physical illness, injury, or health 19
condition; or care for a family member who needs preventive medical 20
care; and 21
(((iii))) (c) When the employee's place of business has been 22
closed by order of a public official for any health-related reason, 23
or when an employee's child's school or place of care has been closed 24
for such a health-related reason or after the declaration of an 25
emergency by a local or state government or agency, or by the federal 26
government. 27
(((c))) (3) An employee is authorized to use paid sick leave for 28
absences that qualify for leave under the domestic violence leave 29
act, chapter 49.76 RCW. 30
(((d))) (4) An employee is entitled to use accrued paid sick 31
leave beginning on the ninetieth calendar day after the commencement 32
of ((his or her)) the employee's employment. 33
(((e))) (5) Employers are not prevented from providing more 34
generous paid sick leave policies or permitting use of paid sick 35
leave for additional purposes. 36
(((f))) (6) An employer may require employees to give reasonable 37
notice of an absence from work, so long as such notice does not 38
interfere with an employee's lawful use of paid sick leave.39
p. 9 HB 1181
(((g))) (7) For absences exceeding three days, an employer may 1
require verification that an employee's use of paid sick leave is for 2
an authorized purpose. If an employer requires verification, 3
verification must be provided to the employer within a reasonable 4
time period during or after the leave. An employer's requirements for 5
verification may not result in an unreasonable burden or expense on 6
the employee and may not exceed privacy or verification requirements 7
otherwise established by law. 8
(((h))) (8) An employer may not require, as a condition of an 9
employee taking paid sick leave, that the employee search for or find 10
a replacement worker to cover the hours during which the employee is 11
on paid sick leave. 12
(((i))) (9) For each hour of paid sick leave used, an employee 13
shall be paid the greater of the minimum hourly wage rate established 14
in this chapter or ((his or her )) the employee's normal hourly 15
compensation. The employer is responsible for providing regular 16
notification to employees about the amount of paid sick leave 17
available to the employee. 18
(((j))) (10) Except as provided in (((l) of this )) subsection 19
(12) of this section, accrued and unused paid sick leave carries over 20
to the following year, but an employer is not required to allow an 21
employee to carry over paid sick leave in excess of 40 hours.22
(((k))) (11) Except as provided in (((l) of this )) subsection 23
(12) of this section , an employer is not required to provide 24
financial or other reimbursement for accrued and unused paid sick 25
leave to any employee upon the employee's termination, resignation, 26
retirement, or other separation from employment. When there is a 27
separation from employment and the employee is rehired within 12 28
months of separation by the same employer, whether at the same or a 29
different business location of the employer, previously accrued 30
unused paid sick leave shall be reinstated and the previous period of 31
employment shall be counted for purposes of determining the 32
employee's eligibility to use paid sick leave under (((d) of this )) 33
subsection (4) of this section . For purposes of this subsection 34
(((1)(k))), "previously accrued and unused paid sick leave" does not 35
include sick leave paid out to a construction worker under (((l) of 36
this)) subsection (12) of this section. 37
(((l)(i))) (12)(a) A construction industry employer must pay a 38
construction worker, who has not met the 90th day eligibility under 39
(((d) of this )) subsection (4) of this section at the time of 40
p. 10 HB 1181
separation, the balance of the worker's accrued and unused paid sick 1
leave at the end of the established pay period following the worker's 2
separation pursuant to RCW 49.48.010(2). 3
(((ii))) (b) The definitions in this subsection (((1)(l)(ii))) 4
(12)(b) apply throughout this subsection (((1)(l))) unless the 5
context clearly requires otherwise. 6
(((A))) (i) "Construction worker" means a worker who performed 7
service, maintenance, or construction work on a jobsite, in the field 8
or in a fabrication shop using the tools of the worker's trade or 9
craft. 10
(((B))) (ii) "Construction industry employer" means an employer 11
in the industry described in North American industry classification 12
system industry code 23, except for residential building construction 13
code 2361. 14
(((2) The definitions in this subsection apply throughout this 15
section, except for subsection (5) of this section:16
(a) "Family member" means a child, grandchild, grandparent, 17
parent, sibling, or spouse of an employee, and also includes any 18
individual who regularly resides in the employee's home or where the 19
relationship creates an expectation that the employee care for the 20
person, and that individual depends on the employee for care. "Family 21
member" includes any individual who regularly resides in the 22
employee's home, except that it does not include an individual who 23
simply resides in the same home with no expectation that the employee 24
care for the individual.25
(b) "Child" means a biological, adopted, or foster child, a 26
stepchild, a child's spouse, or a child to whom the employee stands 27
in loco parentis, is a legal guardian, or is a de facto parent, 28
regardless of age or dependency status.29
(c) "Grandchild" means a child of the employee's child.30
(d) "Grandparent" means a parent of the employee's parent.31
(e) "Parent" means the biological, adoptive, de facto, or foster 32
parent, stepparent, or legal guardian of an employee or the 33
employee's spouse, or an individual who stood in loco parentis to an 34
employee when the employee was a child.35
(f) "Spouse" means a husband or wife, as the case may be, or 36
state registered domestic partner.37
(3) An employer may not adopt or enforce any policy that counts 38
the use of paid sick leave time as an absence that may lead to or 39
result in discipline against the employee.40
p. 11 HB 1181
(4) An employer may not discriminate or retaliate against an 1
employee for his or her exercise of any rights under this chapter 2
including the use of paid sick leave.3
(5)(a) The definitions in this subsection apply to this 4
subsection:5
(i) "Average hourly compensation" means a driver's compensation 6
during passenger platform time from, or facilitated by, the 7
transportation network company, during the 365 days immediately prior 8
to the day that paid sick time is used, divided by the total hours of 9
passenger platform time worked by the driver on that transportation 10
network company's driver platform during that period. "Average hourly 11
compensation" does not include tips.12
(ii) "Driver," "driver platform," "passenger platform time," and 13
"transportation network company" have the meanings provided in RCW 14
49.46.300.15
(iii) "Earned paid sick time" is the time provided by a 16
transportation network company to a driver as calculated under this 17
subsection. For each hour of earned paid sick time used by a driver, 18
the transportation network company shall compensate the driver at a 19
rate equal to the driver's average hourly compensation.20
(iv) For purposes of drivers, the following definitions apply:21
(A) "Family member" means a child, grandchild, grandparent, 22
parent, sibling, or spouse of a driver, and also includes any 23
individual who regularly resides in the driver's home or where the 24
relationship creates an expectation that the driver care for the 25
person, and that individual depends on the driver for care. "Family 26
member" includes any individual who regularly resides in the driver's 27
home, except that it does not include an individual who simply 28
resides in the same home with no expectation that the driver care for 29
the individual.30
(B) "Child" means a biological, adopted, or foster child, a 31
stepchild, a child's spouse, or a child to whom the driver stands in 32
loco parentis, is a legal guardian, or is a de facto parent, 33
regardless of age or dependency status.34
(C) "Grandchild" means a child of the driver's child.35
(D) "Grandparent" means a parent of the driver's parent.36
(E) "Parent" means the biological, adoptive, de facto, or foster 37
parent, stepparent, or legal guardian of a driver or the driver's 38
spouse, or an individual who stood in loco parentis to a driver when 39
the driver was a child.40
p. 12 HB 1181
(F) "Spouse" means a husband or wife, as the case may be, or 1
state registered domestic partner.2
(b) Beginning January 1, 2023, a transportation network company 3
must provide to each driver operating on its driver platform 4
compensation for earned paid sick time as required by this subsection 5
and subject to the provisions of this subsection. A driver shall 6
accrue one hour of earned paid sick time for every 40 hours of 7
passenger platform time worked.8
(c) A driver is entitled to use accrued earned paid sick time 9
upon recording 90 hours of passenger platform time on the 10
transportation network company's driver platform.11
(d) For each hour of earned paid sick time used, a driver shall 12
be paid the driver's average hourly compensation.13
(e) A transportation network company shall establish an 14
accessible system for drivers to request and use earned paid sick 15
time. The system must be available to drivers via smartphone 16
application and online web portal.17
(f) A driver may carry over up to 40 hours of unused earned paid 18
sick time to the next calendar year. If a driver carries over unused 19
earned paid sick time to the following year, accrual of earned paid 20
sick time in the subsequent year must be in addition to the hours 21
accrued in the previous year and carried over.22
(g) A driver is entitled to use accrued earned paid sick time if 23
the driver has used the transportation network company's platform as 24
a driver within 90 calendar days preceding the driver's request to 25
use earned paid sick time.26
(h) A driver is entitled to use earned paid sick time for the 27
following reasons:28
(i) An absence resulting from the driver's mental or physical 29
illness, injury, or health condition; to accommodate the driver's 30
need for medical diagnosis, care, or treatment of a mental or 31
physical illness, injury, or health condition; or an employee's need 32
for preventive medical care;33
(ii) To allow the driver to provide care for a family member with 34
a mental or physical illness, injury, or health condition; care of a 35
family member who needs medical diagnosis, care, or treatment of a 36
mental or physical illness, injury, or health condition; or care for 37
a family member who needs preventive medical care;38
(iii) When the driver's child's school or place of care has been 39
closed by order of a public official for any health-related reason or 40
p. 13 HB 1181
has been closed after the declaration of an emergency by a local or 1
state government or agency, or by the federal government;2
(iv) For absences for which an employee would be entitled for 3
leave under RCW 49.76.030; and4
(v) During a deactivation or other status that prevents the 5
driver from performing network services on the transportation network 6
company's platform, unless the deactivation or status is due to a 7
verified allegation of sexual assault or physical assault perpetrated 8
by the driver.9
(i) If a driver does not record any passenger platform time in a 10
transportation network company's driver platform for 365 or more 11
consecutive days, any unused earned paid sick time accrued up to that 12
point with that transportation network company is no longer valid or 13
recognized.14
(j) Drivers may use accrued days of earned paid sick time in 15
increments of a minimum of four or more hours. Drivers are entitled 16
to request four or more hours of earned paid sick time for immediate 17
use, including consecutive days of use. Drivers are not entitled to 18
use more than eight hours of earned paid sick time within a single 19
calendar day.20
(k) A transportation network company shall compensate a driver 21
for requested hours or days of earned paid sick time no later than 14 22
calendar days or the next regularly scheduled date of compensation 23
following the requested hours or days of earned paid sick time.24
(l) A transportation network company shall not request or require 25
reasonable verification of a driver's qualifying illness except as 26
would be permitted to be requested of an employee under subsection 27
(1)(g) of this section. If a transportation network company requires 28
verification pursuant to this subsection, the transportation network 29
company must compensate the driver for the requested hours or days of 30
earned paid sick time no later than the driver's next regularly 31
scheduled date of compensation after satisfactory verification is 32
provided.33
(m) If a driver accepts an offer of prearranged services for 34
compensation from a transportation network company during the four-35
hour period or periods for which the driver requested earned paid 36
sick time, a transportation network company may determine that the 37
driver did not use earned paid sick time for an authorized purpose.38
(n) A transportation network company shall provide each driver 39
with:40
p. 14 HB 1181
(i) Written notification of the current rate of average hourly 1
compensation while a passenger is in the vehicle during the most 2
recent calendar month for use of earned paid sick time;3
(ii) An updated amount of accrued earned paid sick time since the 4
last notification;5
(iii) Reduced earned paid sick time since the last notification;6
(iv) Any unused earned paid sick time available for use; and7
(v) Any amount that the transportation network company may 8
subtract from the driver's compensation for earned paid sick time. 9
The transportation network company shall provide this information to 10
the driver no less than monthly. The transportation network company 11
may choose a reasonable system for providing this notification, 12
including but not limited to: A pay stub; a weekly summary of 13
compensation information; or an online system where drivers can 14
access their own earned paid sick time information. A transportation 15
network company is not required to provide this information to a 16
driver if the driver has not worked any days since the last 17
notification.18
(o) A transportation network company may not adopt or enforce any 19
policy that counts the use of earned paid sick time as an absence 20
that may lead to or result in any action that adversely affects the 21
driver's use of the transportation network.22
(p) A transportation network company may not take any action 23
against a driver that adversely affects the driver's use of the 24
transportation network due to his or her exercise of any rights under 25
this subsection including the use of earned paid sick time.26
(q) The department may adopt rules to implement this 27
subsection.))28
NEW SECTION. Sec. 7. A new section is added to chapter 49.46 29
RCW to read as follows: 30
Except as provided in RCW 49.46.180, every employer shall provide 31
each of its employees paid vacation leave as follows:32
(1) An employee shall accrue at least 2.3 hours of paid vacation 33
leave for every 40 hours worked as an employee. An employer may 34
provide paid vacation leave in advance of accrual provided that such 35
front-loading meets or exceeds the requirements of this section for 36
accrual, use, and carryover of paid vacation leave.37
p. 15 HB 1181
(2) An employee is entitled to use accrued paid vacation leave 1
for any purpose beginning on the 90th calendar day after the 2
commencement of their employment. 3
(3) Employers are not prevented from providing more generous paid 4
vacation leave policies. 5
(4) An employer may require employees to give reasonable notice 6
of an absence from work, so long as such notice does not interfere 7
with an employee's lawful use of paid vacation leave.8
(5) An employer may not require, as a condition of an employee 9
taking paid vacation leave, that the employee search for or find a 10
replacement worker to cover the hours during which the employee is on 11
paid vacation leave. 12
(6) For each hour of paid vacation leave used, an employee shall 13
be paid the greater of the minimum hourly wage rate established in 14
this chapter or the employee's normal hourly compensation. The 15
employer is responsible for providing regular notification to 16
employees about the amount of paid vacation leave available to the 17
employee. 18
(7) Except as provided in subsection (9) of this section, accrued 19
and unused paid vacation leave carries over to the following year, 20
but an employer is not required to allow an employee to carry over 21
paid vacation leave in excess of 40 hours. 22
(8) Except as provided in subsection (9) of this section, an 23
employer is not required to provide financial or other reimbursement 24
for accrued and unused paid vacation leave to any employee upon the 25
employee's termination, resignation, retirement, or other separation 26
from employment. When there is a separation from employment and the 27
employee is rehired within 12 months of separation by the same 28
employer, whether at the same or a different business location of the 29
employer, previously accrued unused paid vacation leave shall be 30
reinstated and the previous period of employment shall be counted for 31
purposes of determining the employee's eligibility to use paid 32
vacation leave under subsection (2) of this section. For purposes of 33
this subsection (8), "previously accrued and unused paid vacation 34
leave" does not include vacation leave paid out to a construction 35
worker under subsection (9) of this subsection. 36
(9)(a) A construction industry employer must pay a construction 37
worker, who has not met the 90th day eligibility under subsection (2) 38
of this section at the time of separation, the balance of the 39
worker's accrued and unused paid vacation leave at the end of the 40
p. 16 HB 1181
established pay period following the worker's separation pursuant to 1
RCW 49.48.010(2). 2
(b) For the purposes of this section, "construction worker" and 3
"construction industry employer" have the same meanings as provided 4
in RCW 49.46.210. 5
NEW SECTION. Sec. 8. A new section is added to chapter 49.46 6
RCW to read as follows: 7
(1) Beginning on the 90th calendar day after the commencement of 8
an employee's employment, the employee is entitled to at least five 9
days of paid bereavement leave per calendar year if an employee's 10
family member dies. 11
(2) Employers are not prevented from providing more generous 12
bereavement leave policies or to allow employees to take additional 13
leave without pay for purposes of bereavement. 14
(3) An employer may not require an employee to take paid 15
bereavement leave on consecutive days. 16
(4) For each day of paid bereavement leave used, an employee 17
shall be paid the greater of the minimum hourly wage rate established 18
in this chapter or the employee's normal hourly compensation.19
(5)(a) An employer may require verification of the family 20
member's death. 21
(b) Employer-required verification may not result in an 22
unreasonable burden or expense on the employee. 23
(c) If an employer requires verification for the use of 24
bereavement leave, the employer must have a written policy or a 25
collective bargaining agreement outlining any such requirements. The 26
employer must notify the employee of such policy or agreement, 27
including the employee's right to assert that the verification 28
requirement results in an unreasonable burden or expense on the 29
employee, prior to requiring the employee to provide verification. An 30
employer must make this information readily available to all 31
employees. 32
NEW SECTION. Sec. 9. A new section is added to chapter 49.46 33
RCW to read as follows: 34
(1) An employer may not adopt or enforce any policy that counts 35
the use of paid leave required under this chapter as an absence that 36
may lead to or result in discipline against the employee.37
p. 17 HB 1181
(2) An employer may not discriminate or retaliate against an 1
employee for the employee's exercise of any rights under this chapter 2
including the use of paid leave required under RCW 49.46.210 or 3
section 7 or 8 of this act. 4
Sec. 10. RCW 49.46.300 and 2022 c 281 s 1 are each amended to 5
read as follows: 6
(((1))) The definitions in this ((subsection)) section apply 7
throughout this section and RCW 49.46.310 through 49.46.350 and 8
sections 11 through 15 of this act unless the context clearly 9
requires otherwise. 10
(((a))) (1) "Account deactivation" means one or more of the 11
following actions with respect to an individual driver or group of 12
drivers that is implemented by a transportation network company and 13
lasts for more than three consecutive days: 14
(((i))) (a) Blocking access to the transportation network company 15
driver platform; 16
(((ii))) (b) Changing a driver's status from eligible to provide 17
transportation network company services to ineligible; or18
(((iii))) (c) Any other material restriction in access to the 19
transportation network company's driver platform. 20
(((b))) (2) "Compensation" means payment owed to a driver by 21
reason of providing network services including, but not limited to, 22
the minimum payment for passenger platform time and mileage, 23
incentives, and tips. 24
(((c) "Department" means the department of labor and industries.25
(d))) (3) "Digital network" means any online-enabled application, 26
website, or system offered or used by a transportation network 27
company that enables the prearrangement of rides between drivers and 28
passengers. 29
(((e) "Director" means the director of the department of labor 30
and industries.31
(f))) (4) "Dispatch location" means the location of the driver at 32
the time the driver accepts a trip request through the driver 33
platform. 34
(((g))) (5) "Dispatch platform time" means the time a driver 35
spends traveling from a dispatch location to a passenger pick-up 36
location. Dispatch platform time ends when a passenger cancels a trip 37
or the driver begins the trip through the driver platform. A driver 38
cannot simultaneously be engaged in dispatch platform time and 39
p. 18 HB 1181
passenger platform time for the same transportation network company. 1
For shared rides, dispatch platform time means the time a driver 2
spends traveling from the first dispatch location to the first 3
passenger pick-up location. 4
(((h))) (6) "Dispatched trip" means the provision of 5
transportation by a driver for a passenger through the use of a 6
transportation network company's application dispatch system.7
(((i))) (7) "Driver" has the same meaning as "commercial 8
transportation services provider driver" in RCW 48.177.005. Except as 9
otherwise specified in chapter 281, Laws of 2022, for purposes of 10
this title and Titles 48, 50A, 50B, and 51 RCW, and any orders, 11
regulations, administrative policies, or opinions of any state or 12
local agency, board, division, or commission, pursuant to those 13
titles, a driver is not an employee or agent of a transportation 14
network company if the following factors are met: 15
(((i))) (a) The transportation network company does not 16
unilaterally prescribe specific dates, times of day, or a minimum 17
number of hours during which the driver must be logged into the 18
transportation network company's online-enabled application or 19
platform; 20
(((ii))) (b) The transportation network company may not terminate 21
the contract of the driver for not accepting a specific 22
transportation service request; 23
(((iii))) (c) The transportation network company does not 24
contractually prohibit the driver from performing services through 25
other transportation network companies except while performing 26
services through the transportation network company's online-enabled 27
application or platform during dispatch platform time and passenger 28
platform time; ((and29
(iv))) (d) The transportation network company does not 30
contractually prohibit the driver from working in any other lawful 31
occupation or business((.));32
(e) Notwithstanding any state or local law to the contrary, any 33
party seeking to establish that the factors in this subsection 34
(((1)(i))) (7) are not met bears the burden of proof((.)); and35
(f) A driver for purposes of this section shall not include any 36
person ultimately and finally determined to be an "employee" within 37
the meaning of section 2 (3) of the national labor relations act, 29 38
U.S.C. Sec. 152(3). 39
p. 19 HB 1181
(((j))) (8) "Driver platform" means the driver-facing application 1
dispatch system software or any online-enabled application service, 2
website, or system, used by a driver, or which enables services to be 3
delivered to a driver that enables the prearrangement of passenger 4
trips for compensation. 5
(((k))) (9) "Driver resource center" or "center" means a 6
nonprofit organization that provides services to drivers. The 7
nonprofit organization must be registered with the Washington 8
secretary of state, have organizational bylaws giving drivers right 9
to membership in the organization, and have demonstrated experience: 10
(i) Providing services to gig economy drivers in Washington state, 11
including representing drivers in deactivation appeals proceedings; 12
and (ii) providing culturally competent driver representation 13
services, outreach, and education. The administration and formation 14
of the driver resource center may not be funded, excessively 15
influenced, or controlled by a transportation network company.16
(((l))) (10) "Driver resource center fund" or "fund" means the 17
dedicated fund created in RCW 49.46.310, the sole purpose of which is 18
to administer funds collected from transportation network companies 19
to provide services, support, and benefits to drivers.20
(((m))) (11) "Network services" means services related to the 21
transportation of passengers through the driver platform that are 22
provided by a driver while logged in to the driver platform, 23
including services provided during available platform time, dispatch 24
platform time, and passenger platform time. 25
(((n))) (12) "Passenger" has the same meaning as "commercial 26
transportation services provider passenger" in RCW 48.177.005.27
(((o))) (13) "Passenger drop-off location" means the location of 28
a driver's vehicle when the passenger leaves the vehicle.29
(((p))) (14) "Passenger pick-up location" means the location of 30
the driver's vehicle at the time the driver starts the trip in the 31
driver platform. 32
(((q))) (15) "Passenger platform miles" means all miles driven 33
during passenger platform time as recorded in a transportation 34
network company's driver platform. 35
(((r))) (16) "Passenger platform time" means the period of time 36
when the driver is transporting one or more passengers on a trip. For 37
shared rides, passenger platform time means the period of time 38
commencing when the first passenger enters the driver's vehicle until 39
the time when the last passenger exits the driver's vehicle.40
p. 20 HB 1181
(((s))) (17) "Personal vehicle" has the same meaning as "personal 1
vehicle" in RCW 48.177.005. 2
(((t))) (18) "Shared ride" means a dispatched trip which, prior 3
to its commencement, a passenger requests through the transportation 4
network company's digital network to share the dispatched trip with 5
one or more passengers and each passenger is charged a fare that is 6
calculated, in whole or in part, based on the passenger's request to 7
share all or a part of the dispatched trip with one or more 8
passengers, regardless of whether the passenger actually shares all 9
or a part of the dispatched trip. 10
(((u))) (19) "Tips" means a verifiable sum to be presented by a 11
passenger as a gift or gratuity in recognition of service performed 12
for the passenger by the driver receiving the tip.13
(((v))) (20) "Transportation network company" has the same 14
meaning as defined in RCW 46.04.652. A transportation network company 15
does not provide for hire transportation service. 16
(((2) A driver is only covered by this section to the extent that 17
the driver provides network services within the state of Washington.18
(3)(a) A transportation network company is covered by this 19
section if it provides a driver platform within the state of 20
Washington.21
(b) Separate entities that form an integrated enterprise are 22
considered a single transportation network company under this 23
section. Separate entities will be considered an integrated 24
enterprise and a single transportation network company where a 25
separate entity controls the operation of another entity. Factors to 26
consider include, but are not limited to, the degree of interrelation 27
between the operations of multiple entities; the degree to which the 28
entities share common management; the centralized control of labor 29
relations; the degree of common ownership or financial control over 30
the entities; and the use of a common brand, trade, business, or 31
operating name.32
(4)(a) Beginning December 31, 2022, a transportation network 33
company shall ensure that a driver's total compensation is not less 34
than the standard set forth in (a)(i), (ii), or (iii) of this 35
subsection (4).36
(i) For all dispatched trips originating in cities with a 37
population of more than 600,000, on a per trip basis the greater of:38
p. 21 HB 1181
(A) $0.59 per passenger platform minute for all passenger 1
platform time for that trip, and $1.38 per passenger platform mile 2
for all passenger platform miles driven on that trip; or3
(B) A minimum of $5.17 per dispatched trip.4
(ii) For all other dispatched trips, the greater of:5
(A) $0.34 per passenger platform minute and $1.17 per passenger 6
platform mile; or7
(B) A minimum of $3.00 per dispatched trip.8
(iii) For all trips originating elsewhere and terminating in 9
cities with a population of more than 600,000:10
(A) For all passenger platform time spent within the city on that 11
trip and for all passenger platform miles driven in the city on that 12
trip the compensation standard under (a)(i) of this subsection 13
applies.14
(B) For all passenger platform time spent outside the city on 15
that trip and for all passenger platform miles driven outside the 16
city on that trip the compensation standard under (a)(ii) of this 17
subsection applies.18
(b) Beginning September 30, 2022, and on each following September 19
30th, the department shall calculate adjusted per mile and per minute 20
amounts and per trip minimums by increasing the current year's per 21
mile and per minute amounts and per trip minimums by the rate of 22
increase of the state minimum wage, calculated to the nearest cent. 23
The adjusted amount calculated under this section takes effect on the 24
following January 1st.25
(c) For shared rides, the per trip minimums in (a)(i) and (ii) of 26
this subsection shall apply only to the entirety of the shared ride, 27
and not on the basis of the individual passenger's trip within the 28
shared ride.29
(5)(a) For the purposes of this section, a dispatched trip 30
includes:31
(i) A dispatched trip in which the driver transports the 32
passenger to the passenger drop-off location;33
(ii) A dispatched trip canceled after two minutes by a passenger 34
or the transportation network company unless cancellation is due to 35
driver conduct, or no cancellation fee is charged to the passenger;36
(iii) A dispatched trip that is canceled by the driver for good 37
cause consistent with company policy; and38
(iv) A dispatched trip where the passenger does not appear at the 39
passenger pick-up location within five minutes.40
p. 22 HB 1181
(b) A transportation network company may exclude time and miles 1
if doing so is reasonably necessary to remedy or prevent fraudulent 2
use of the transportation network company's online-enabled 3
application or platform.4
(6)(a) A transportation network company shall remit to drivers 5
all tips. Tips paid to a driver are in addition to, and may not count 6
towards, the driver's minimum compensation under this section.7
(b) Amounts charged to a passenger and remitted to the driver for 8
tolls, fees, or surcharges incurred by a driver during a trip must 9
not be included in calculating compensation for purposes of 10
subsection (4) of this section.11
(c)(i) Beginning January 1, 2023, except as required by law, a 12
transportation network company may only deduct compensation when the 13
driver expressly authorizes the deduction in writing and does so in 14
advance for a lawful purpose. Any authorization by a driver must be 15
voluntary and knowing.16
(ii) Nothing in this section shall prohibit a transportation 17
network company from deducting compensation as required by state or 18
federal law or as directed by a court order.19
(iii) Neither the transportation network company nor any person 20
acting in the interest of the transportation network company may 21
derive any financial profit or benefit from any of the deductions 22
under this section. For the purposes of this section:23
(A) Reasonable interest charged by the transportation network 24
company or any person acting in the interest of a transportation 25
network company, for a loan or credit extended to the driver, is not 26
considered to be of financial benefit to the transportation network 27
company or person acting in the interest of a transportation network 28
company; and29
(B) A deduction will be considered for financial profit or 30
benefit only if it results in a gain over and above the fair market 31
value of the goods or services for which the deduction was made.32
(7)(a) Beginning January 1, 2023, a transportation network 33
company shall provide each driver with a written notice of rights 34
established by this section in a form and manner sufficient to inform 35
drivers of their rights under this section. The notice of rights 36
shall provide information on:37
(i) The right to the applicable per minute rate and per mile rate 38
or per trip rate guaranteed by this section;39
p. 23 HB 1181
(ii) The right to be protected from retaliation for exercising in 1
good faith the rights protected by this section; and2
(iii) The right to seek legal action or file a complaint with the 3
department for violation of the requirements of this section, 4
including a transportation network company's failure to pay the 5
minimum per minute rate or per mile rate or per trip rate, or a 6
transportation network company's retaliation against a driver or 7
other person for engaging in an activity protected by this section.8
(b) A transportation network company shall provide the notice of 9
rights required by this section in an electronic format that is 10
readily accessible to the driver. The notice of rights shall be made 11
available to the driver via smartphone application or online web 12
portal, in English and the five most common foreign languages spoken 13
in this state.14
(8) Beginning December 31, 2022, within 24 hours of completion of 15
each dispatched trip, a transportation network company must transmit 16
an electronic receipt to the driver that contains the following 17
information for each unique trip, or portion of a unique trip, 18
covered by this section:19
(a) The total amount of passenger platform time;20
(b) The total mileage driven during passenger platform time;21
(c) Rate or rates of pay, including but not limited to the rate 22
per minute, rate per mile, percentage of passenger fare, and any 23
applicable price multiplier or variable pricing policy in effect for 24
the trip;25
(d) Tip compensation;26
(e) Gross payment;27
(f) Net payment after deductions, fees, tolls, surcharges, lease 28
fees, or other charges; and29
(g) Itemized deductions or fees, including any toll, surcharge, 30
commission, lease fees, and other charges.31
(9) Beginning January 1, 2023, a transportation network company 32
shall make driver per trip receipts available in a downloadable 33
format, such as a comma-separated values file or PDF file, via 34
smartphone application or online web portal for a period of two years 35
from the date the transportation network company provided the receipt 36
to the driver.37
(10) Beginning January 1, 2023, on a weekly basis, the 38
transportation network company shall provide written notice to the 39
driver that contains the following information for trips, or a 40
p. 24 HB 1181
portion of a trip, that is covered by this section and which occurred 1
in the prior week: 2
(a) The driver's total passenger platform time;3
(b) Total mileage driven by the driver during passenger platform 4
time;5
(c) The driver's total tip compensation;6
(d) The driver's gross payment, itemized by: (i) Rate per minute; 7
(ii) rate per mile; and (iii) any other method used to calculate pay 8
including, but not limited to, base pay, percentage of passenger 9
fare, or any applicable price multiplier or variable pricing policy 10
in effect for the trip;11
(e) The driver's net payment after deductions, fees, tolls, 12
surcharges, lease fees, or other charges; and13
(f) Itemized deductions or fees, including all tolls, surcharges, 14
commissions, lease fees, and other charges, from the driver's 15
payment.16
(11) Beginning January 1, 2023, within 24 hours of a trip's 17
completion, a transportation network company must transmit an 18
electronic receipt to the passenger, for on trip time, on behalf of 19
the driver that lists:20
(a) The date and time of the trip;21
(b) The passenger pick-up and passenger drop-off locations for 22
the trip. In describing the passenger pick-up location and passenger 23
drop-off location, the transportation network company shall describe 24
the location by indicating the specific block (e.g. "the 300 block of 25
Pine Street") in which the passenger pick-up and passenger drop-off 26
occurred. A transportation network company is authorized to indicate 27
the location with greater specificity, such as with a street address 28
or intersection, at its discretion;29
(c) The total duration and distance of the trip;30
(d) The driver's first name;31
(e) The total fare paid, itemizing all charges and fees; and32
(f) The total passenger-paid tips.33
(12)(a) Beginning July 1, 2024, transportation network companies 34
shall collect and remit a $0.15 per trip fee to the driver resource 35
center fund, created in RCW 49.46.310, for the driver resource center 36
to support the driver community. The remittance under this subsection 37
is a pass-through of passenger fares and shall not be considered a 38
transportation network company's funding of the driver resource 39
center. Passenger fares paid include each individual trip portion on 40
p. 25 HB 1181
shared trips. The remittances to the fund must be made on a quarterly 1
basis. 2
(b) Beginning September 30, 2024, and on each following September 3
30th, the department shall calculate an adjusted per trip fee by 4
adjusting the current amount by the rate of inflation. The adjusted 5
amounts must be calculated to the nearest cent using the consumer 6
price index for urban wage earners and clerical workers, CPI-W, or a 7
successor index, for the 12 months prior to each September 1st as 8
calculated by the United States department of labor. Each adjusted 9
amount calculated under this subsection takes effect on the following 10
January 1st.11
(13) No later than one year after June 9, 2022, transportation 12
network companies shall provide an opportunity for drivers to make 13
voluntary per trip earnings deduction contributions to the driver 14
resource center, provided that 100 or more drivers working for 15
transportation network companies covered under this section have 16
authorized such a deduction to the driver resource center, and 17
subject to the following:18
(a) A driver must expressly authorize the deduction in writing. 19
Written authorization must include, at a minimum, sufficient 20
information to identify the driver and the driver's desired per trip 21
deduction amount. These deductions may reduce the driver's per trip 22
earnings below the minimums set forth in this section.23
(b) The transportation network company may require written 24
authorization to be submitted in electronic format from the driver 25
resource center.26
(c) The transportation network company shall make the first 27
deductions within 30 days of receiving a written authorization of the 28
driver, and shall remit deductions to the driver resource center each 29
month, with remittance due not later than 28 days following the end 30
of the month.31
(d) A driver's authorization remains in effect until the driver 32
resource center provides an express revocation to the transportation 33
network company.34
(e) A transportation network company shall rely on information 35
provided by the driver resource center regarding the authorization 36
and revocation of deductions.37
(f) Upon request by a transportation network company, the driver 38
resource center shall reimburse the transportation network company 39
p. 26 HB 1181
for the costs associated with deduction and remittance. The 1
department shall adopt rules to calculate the reimbursable costs.2
(14) Each transportation network company shall submit to the 3
fund, with its remittance under subsection (12) of this section, a 4
report detailing the number of trips in the previous quarter and the 5
total amount of the surcharge charged to customers. The first payment 6
and accounting is due on the 30th day of the quarter following the 7
imposition of the surcharge. Failure to remit payments by the 8
deadlines is deemed a delinquency and the transportation network 9
company is subject to penalties and interest provided in RCW 10
49.46.330.11
(15)(a) The state expressly intends to displace competition with 12
regulation allowing a transportation network company, at its own 13
volition, to enter into an agreement with the driver resource center 14
regarding a driver account deactivation appeals process for eligible 15
account deactivations. It is the policy of the state to promote a 16
fair appeals process related to eligible account deactivations that 17
supports the rights of drivers and transportation network companies 18
and provides fair processes related to eligible account 19
deactivations. The state intends that any agreement under this 20
section is immune from all federal and state antitrust laws.21
(i) "Eligible account deactivation" means one or more of the 22
following actions with respect to an individual driver that is 23
implemented by a transportation network company:24
(A) Blocking or restricting access to the transportation network 25
company driver platform for three or more consecutive days; or26
(B) Changing a driver's account status from eligible to provide 27
transportation network company services to ineligible for three or 28
more consecutive days.29
(ii) An eligible account deactivation does not include any change 30
in a driver's access or account status that is:31
(A) Related to an allegation of discrimination, harassment, 32
including sexual harassment or harassment due to someone's membership 33
in a protected class, or physical or sexual assault, or willful or 34
knowing commitment of fraud;35
(B) Related to an allegation that the driver was under the 36
influence of drugs or alcohol while a related active investigation 37
that takes no longer than 10 business days is under way; or38
p. 27 HB 1181
(C) Any other categories the transportation network company and 1
the driver resource center may agree to as part of the agreement 2
under this subsection.3
(iii) A transportation network company shall enter into an 4
agreement with the driver resource center regarding the driver 5
account deactivation appeals process for eligible account 6
deactivations. Any agreement must be approved by the department. The 7
department may approve an agreement only if the agreement contains 8
the provisions in (a)(iv) of this subsection.9
(iv) The agreement must provide an appeals process for drivers 10
whose account has been subject to an eligible account deactivation. 11
The appeals process must include the following protections:12
(A) Opportunity for a driver representative to support a driver, 13
upon the driver's request, throughout the account deactivation 14
appeals process for eligible account deactivations;15
(B) Notification, as required by (d) of this subsection, to 16
drivers of their right to representation by the driver resource 17
center at the time of the eligible account deactivation;18
(C) Within 30 calendar days of a request, furnishing to the 19
driver resource center an explanation and information the 20
transportation network company may have relied upon in making the 21
deactivation decision, excluding confidential, proprietary, or 22
otherwise privileged communications, provided that personal 23
identifying information and confidential information is redacted to 24
address reasonable privacy and confidentiality concerns;25
(D) A good faith, informal resolution process that is committed 26
to efficient resolution of conflicts regarding eligible account 27
deactivations within 30 days of the transportation network company 28
being notified that the driver contests the explanation offered by 29
the company;30
(E) A formal process that includes a just cause standard, with 31
deadlines for adjudication of an appeal of an eligible account 32
deactivation by a panel that includes a mutually agreed-upon neutral 33
third party with experience in dispute resolution. The panel has the 34
authority to make binding decisions within the confines of the law 35
and make-whole monetary awards, including back pay, based on an 36
agreed-upon formula for cases not resolved during the informal 37
process;38
(F) Agreement by the transportation network company to use the 39
process set forth in this subsection to resolve disputes over 40
p. 28 HB 1181
eligible account deactivation appeals as an alternative to private 1
arbitration with regard to such a dispute, should the driver and 2
transportation network company so choose; and 3
(G) Agreement by the transportation network company that, for 4
eligible account deactivations in which the driver or transportation 5
network company elect private arbitration in lieu of the formal 6
process outlined in (a)(iv)(E) of this subsection (15), the 7
transportation network company shall offer the driver the opportunity 8
to have the eligible deactivation adjudicated under the just cause 9
standard outlined in (a)(iv)(E) of this subsection.10
(b) A transportation network company that enters into an 11
agreement with the driver resource center shall reach agreement 12
through the following steps:13
(i)(A) For a transportation network company operating a digital 14
network in the state of Washington as of June 9, 2022, the driver 15
resource center and transportation network company must make good 16
faith efforts to reach an agreement within 120 days of an 17
organization being selected as the driver resource center under RCW 18
49.46.310.19
(B) For a transportation network company who begins operating a 20
digital network in the state of Washington after an organization has 21
been selected as the driver resource center under RCW 49.46.310, the 22
driver resource center and transportation network company must make 23
good faith efforts to reach an agreement within 120 days of the 24
transportation network company beginning operation of a digital 25
network in the state of Washington.26
(ii) If the driver resource center and transportation network 27
company cannot reach an agreement, then they are required to submit 28
issues of dispute before a jointly agreed-upon mediator.29
(iii) After mediation lasting no more than two months has been 30
exhausted and no resolution has been reached, then the parties will 31
proceed to binding arbitration before a panel of arbitrators 32
consisting of one arbitrator selected by the driver resource center, 33
one arbitrator selected by the transportation network company, and a 34
third arbitrator selected by the other two. If the two selected 35
arbitrators cannot agree to the third arbitrator within 10 days, then 36
the third arbitrator shall be determined from a list of seven 37
arbitrators with experience in labor disputes or interest arbitration 38
designated by the American arbitration association. A coin toss shall 39
determine which side strikes the first name. Thereafter the other 40
p. 29 HB 1181
side shall strike a name. The process will continue until only one 1
name remains, who shall be the third arbitrator. Alternatively, the 2
driver resource center and the transportation network company may 3
agree to a single arbitrator. 4
(iv) The arbitrators must submit their decision, based on 5
majority rule, within 60 days of the panel or arbitrator being 6
chosen.7
(v) The decision of the majority of arbitrators is final and 8
binding and will then be submitted to the director of the department 9
for final approval.10
(c) In reviewing any agreement between a transportation network 11
company and the driver resource center, under (a) of this subsection, 12
the department shall review the agreement to ensure that its content 13
is consistent with this subsection and the public policy goals set 14
forth in this subsection. The department shall consider in its review 15
both qualitative and quantitative effects of the agreement and how 16
the agreement comports with the state policies set forth in this 17
section. In conducting a review, the record shall not be limited to 18
the submissions of the parties nor to the terms of the proposed 19
agreement and the department shall have the right to conduct public 20
hearings and request additional information from the parties, 21
provided that such information: (i) Is relevant for determining 22
whether the agreement complies with this subsection; and (ii) does 23
not contain either parties' confidential, proprietary, or privileged 24
information, or any individual's personal identifying information 25
from the parties. The department may approve or reject a proposed 26
agreement, and may require the parties to submit a revised proposal 27
on all or particular parts of the proposed agreement. If the 28
department rejects an agreement, it shall set forth its reasoning in 29
writing and shall suggest ways the parties may remedy the failures. 30
Absent good cause, the department shall issue a written determination 31
regarding its approval or rejection within 60 days of submission of 32
the agreement.33
(d)(i) For any account deactivation, the transportation network 34
company shall provide notification to the driver, at the time of 35
deactivation, that the driver may have the right to representation by 36
the driver resource center to appeal the account deactivation.37
(ii) A transportation network company must provide any driver 38
whose account is subject to an account deactivation between June 9, 39
2022, and the effective date of the agreement the contact information 40
p. 30 HB 1181
of the driver resource center and notification that the driver may 1
have the right to appeal the account deactivation with representation 2
by the driver resource center. 3
(16) The department may adopt rules to implement this section.))4
NEW SECTION. Sec. 11. A new section is added to chapter 49.46 5
RCW to read as follows: 6
(1) A driver is only covered by this section to the extent that 7
the driver provides network services within the state of Washington.8
(2)(a) A transportation network company is covered by this 9
section if it provides a driver platform within the state of 10
Washington. 11
(b) Separate entities that form an integrated enterprise are 12
considered a single transportation network company under this 13
section. Separate entities will be considered an integrated 14
enterprise and a single transportation network company where a 15
separate entity controls the operation of another entity. Factors to 16
consider include, but are not limited to: The degree of interrelation 17
between the operations of multiple entities; the degree to which the 18
entities share common management; the centralized control of labor 19
relations; the degree of common ownership or financial control over 20
the entities; and the use of a common brand, trade, business, or 21
operating name. 22
(3)(a) Beginning December 31, 2022, a transportation network 23
company shall ensure that a driver's total compensation is not less 24
than the standard set forth in this subsection (3)(a).25
(i) For all dispatched trips originating in cities with a 26
population of more than 600,000, on a per trip basis the greater of:27
(A) $0.59 per passenger platform minute for all passenger 28
platform time for that trip, and $1.38 per passenger platform mile 29
for all passenger platform miles driven on that trip; or30
(B) A minimum of $5.17 per dispatched trip. 31
(ii) For all other dispatched trips, the greater of:32
(A) $0.34 per passenger platform minute and $1.17 per passenger 33
platform mile; or 34
(B) A minimum of $3.00 per dispatched trip. 35
(iii) For all trips originating elsewhere and terminating in 36
cities with a population of more than 600,000: 37
(A) For all passenger platform time spent within the city on that 38
trip and for all passenger platform miles driven in the city on that 39
p. 31 HB 1181
trip the compensation standard under (a)(i) of this subsection 1
applies; 2
(B) For all passenger platform time spent outside the city on 3
that trip and for all passenger platform miles driven outside the 4
city on that trip the compensation standard under (a)(ii) of this 5
subsection applies. 6
(b) Beginning September 30, 2022, and on each following September 7
30th, the department shall calculate adjusted per mile and per minute 8
amounts and per trip minimums by increasing the current year's per 9
mile and per minute amounts and per trip minimums by the rate of 10
increase of the state minimum wage, calculated to the nearest cent. 11
The adjusted amount calculated under this section takes effect on the 12
following January 1st. 13
(c) For shared rides, the per trip minimums in (a)(i) and (ii) of 14
this subsection shall apply only to the entirety of the shared ride, 15
and not on the basis of the individual passenger's trip within the 16
shared ride. 17
(4)(a) For the purposes of this section, a dispatched trip 18
includes: 19
(i) A dispatched trip in which the driver transports the 20
passenger to the passenger drop-off location; 21
(ii) A dispatched trip canceled after two minutes by a passenger 22
or the transportation network company unless cancellation is due to 23
driver conduct, or no cancellation fee is charged to the passenger;24
(iii) A dispatched trip that is canceled by the driver for good 25
cause consistent with company policy; and 26
(iv) A dispatched trip where the passenger does not appear at the 27
passenger pick-up location within five minutes. 28
(b) A transportation network company may exclude time and miles 29
if doing so is reasonably necessary to remedy or prevent fraudulent 30
use of the transportation network company's online-enabled 31
application or platform. 32
(5)(a) A transportation network company shall remit to drivers 33
all tips. Tips paid to a driver are in addition to, and may not count 34
towards, the driver's minimum compensation under this section.35
(b) Amounts charged to a passenger and remitted to the driver for 36
tolls, fees, or surcharges incurred by a driver during a trip must 37
not be included in calculating compensation for purposes of 38
subsection (3) of this section. 39
p. 32 HB 1181
(c)(i) Beginning January 1, 2023, except as required by law, a 1
transportation network company may only deduct compensation when the 2
driver expressly authorizes the deduction in writing and does so in 3
advance for a lawful purpose. Any authorization by a driver must be 4
voluntary and knowing. 5
(ii) Nothing in this section shall prohibit a transportation 6
network company from deducting compensation as required by state or 7
federal law or as directed by a court order. 8
(iii) Neither the transportation network company nor any person 9
acting in the interest of the transportation network company may 10
derive any financial profit or benefit from any of the deductions 11
under this section. For the purposes of this section:12
(A) Reasonable interest charged by the transportation network 13
company or any person acting in the interest of a transportation 14
network company, for a loan or credit extended to the driver, is not 15
considered to be of financial benefit to the transportation network 16
company or person acting in the interest of a transportation network 17
company; and 18
(B) A deduction will be considered for financial profit or 19
benefit only if it results in a gain over and above the fair market 20
value of the goods or services for which the deduction was made.21
(6)(a) Beginning January 1, 2023, a transportation network 22
company shall provide each driver with a written notice of rights 23
established by this section in a form and manner sufficient to inform 24
drivers of their rights under this section. The notice of rights 25
shall provide information on: 26
(i) The right to the applicable per minute rate and per mile rate 27
or per trip rate guaranteed by this section; 28
(ii) The right to be protected from retaliation for exercising in 29
good faith the rights protected by this section; and30
(iii) The right to seek legal action or file a complaint with the 31
department for violation of the requirements of this section, 32
including a transportation network company's failure to pay the 33
minimum per minute rate or per mile rate or per trip rate, or a 34
transportation network company's retaliation against a driver or 35
other person for engaging in an activity protected by this section.36
(b) A transportation network company shall provide the notice of 37
rights required by this section in an electronic format that is 38
readily accessible to the driver. The notice of rights shall be made 39
available to the driver via smartphone application or online web 40
p. 33 HB 1181
portal, in English, and the five most common foreign languages spoken 1
in this state. 2
(7) Beginning December 31, 2022, within 24 hours of completion of 3
each dispatched trip, a transportation network company must transmit 4
an electronic receipt to the driver that contains the following 5
information for each unique trip, or portion of a unique trip, 6
covered by this section: 7
(a) The total amount of passenger platform time;8
(b) The total mileage driven during passenger platform time;9
(c) Rate or rates of pay including, but not limited to, the rate 10
per minute, rate per mile, percentage of passenger fare, and any 11
applicable price multiplier or variable pricing policy in effect for 12
the trip; 13
(d) Tip compensation; 14
(e) Gross payment; 15
(f) Net payment after deductions, fees, tolls, surcharges, lease 16
fees, or other charges; and 17
(g) Itemized deductions or fees, including any toll, surcharge, 18
commission, lease fees, and other charges. 19
(8) Beginning January 1, 2023, a transportation network company 20
shall make driver per trip receipts available in a downloadable 21
format, such as a comma-separated values file or PDF file, via 22
smartphone application or online web portal for a period of two years 23
from the date the transportation network company provided the receipt 24
to the driver. 25
(9) Beginning January 1, 2023, on a weekly basis, the 26
transportation network company shall provide written notice to the 27
driver that contains the following information for trips, or a 28
portion of a trip, that is covered by this section and which occurred 29
in the prior week: 30
(a) The driver's total passenger platform time;31
(b) Total mileage driven by the driver during passenger platform 32
time; 33
(c) The driver's total tip compensation; 34
(d) The driver's gross payment, itemized by: (i) Rate per minute; 35
(ii) rate per mile; and (iii) any other method used to calculate pay 36
including, but not limited to, base pay, percentage of passenger 37
fare, or any applicable price multiplier or variable pricing policy 38
in effect for the trip; 39
p. 34 HB 1181
(e) The driver's net payment after deductions, fees, tolls, 1
surcharges, lease fees, or other charges; and 2
(f) Itemized deductions or fees, including all tolls, surcharges, 3
commissions, lease fees, and other charges, from the driver's 4
payment. 5
(10) Beginning January 1, 2023, within 24 hours of a trip's 6
completion, a transportation network company must transmit an 7
electronic receipt to the passenger, for on trip time, on behalf of 8
the driver that lists: 9
(a) The date and time of the trip; 10
(b) The passenger pick-up and passenger drop-off locations for 11
the trip. In describing the passenger pick-up location and passenger 12
drop-off location, the transportation network company shall describe 13
the location by indicating the specific block (e.g. "the 300 block of 14
Pine Street") in which the passenger pick-up and passenger drop-off 15
occurred. A transportation network company is authorized to indicate 16
the location with greater specificity, such as with a street address 17
or intersection, at its discretion; 18
(c) The total duration and distance of the trip;19
(d) The driver's first name; 20
(e) The total fare paid, itemizing all charges and fees; and21
(f) The total passenger-paid tips. 22
NEW SECTION. Sec. 12. A new section is added to chapter 49.46 23
RCW to read as follows: 24
(1)(a) Transportation network companies shall collect and remit a 25
$0.15 per trip fee to the driver resource center fund, created in RCW 26
49.46.310, for the driver resource center to support the driver 27
community. The remittance under this subsection is a pass-through of 28
passenger fares and shall not be considered a transportation network 29
company's funding of the driver resource center. Passenger fares paid 30
include each individual trip portion on shared trips. The remittances 31
to the fund must be made on a quarterly basis. 32
(b) Beginning September 30, 2024, and on each following September 33
30th, the department shall calculate an adjusted per trip fee by 34
adjusting the current amount by the rate of inflation. The adjusted 35
amounts must be calculated to the nearest cent using the consumer 36
price index for urban wage earners and clerical workers, CPI-W, or a 37
successor index, for the 12 months prior to each September 1st as 38
calculated by the United States department of labor. Each adjusted 39
p. 35 HB 1181
amount calculated under this subsection takes effect on the following 1
January 1st. 2
(2) Transportation network companies shall provide an opportunity 3
for drivers to make voluntary per trip earnings deduction 4
contributions to the driver resource center, provided that 100 or 5
more drivers working for transportation network companies covered 6
under this section have authorized such a deduction to the driver 7
resource center, and subject to the following: 8
(a) A driver must expressly authorize the deduction in writing. 9
Written authorization must include, at a minimum, sufficient 10
information to identify the driver and the driver's desired per trip 11
deduction amount. These deductions may reduce the driver's per trip 12
earnings below the minimums set forth in this section.13
(b) The transportation network company may require written 14
authorization to be submitted in electronic format from the driver 15
resource center. 16
(c) The transportation network company shall make the first 17
deductions within 30 days of receiving a written authorization of the 18
driver and shall remit deductions to the driver resource center each 19
month, with remittance due not later than 28 days following the end 20
of the month. 21
(d) A driver's authorization remains in effect until the driver 22
resource center provides an express revocation to the transportation 23
network company. 24
(e) A transportation network company shall rely on information 25
provided by the driver resource center regarding the authorization 26
and revocation of deductions. 27
(f) Upon request by a transportation network company, the driver 28
resource center shall reimburse the transportation network company 29
for the costs associated with deduction and remittance. The 30
department shall adopt rules to calculate the reimbursable costs.31
(3) Each transportation network company shall submit to the fund, 32
with its remittance under subsection (1) of this section, a report 33
detailing the number of trips in the previous quarter and the total 34
amount of the surcharge charged to customers. The first payment and 35
accounting is due on the 30th day of the quarter following the 36
imposition of the surcharge. Failure to remit payments by the 37
deadlines is deemed a delinquency and the transportation network 38
company is subject to penalties and interest provided in RCW 39
49.46.330. 40
p. 36 HB 1181
(4)(a) The state expressly intends to displace competition with 1
regulation allowing a transportation network company, at its own 2
volition, to enter into an agreement with the driver resource center 3
regarding a driver account deactivation appeals process for eligible 4
account deactivations. It is the policy of the state to promote a 5
fair appeals process related to eligible account deactivations that 6
supports the rights of drivers and transportation network companies 7
and provides fair processes related to eligible account 8
deactivations. The state intends that any agreement under this 9
section is immune from all federal and state antitrust laws.10
(i) "Eligible account deactivation" means one or more of the 11
following actions with respect to an individual driver that is 12
implemented by a transportation network company: 13
(A) Blocking or restricting access to the transportation network 14
company driver platform for three or more consecutive days; or15
(B) Changing a driver's account status from eligible to provide 16
transportation network company services to ineligible for three or 17
more consecutive days. 18
(ii) An eligible account deactivation does not include any change 19
in a driver's access or account status that is: 20
(A) Related to an allegation of discrimination, harassment, 21
including sexual harassment or harassment due to someone's membership 22
in a protected class, or physical or sexual assault, or willful or 23
knowing commitment of fraud; 24
(B) Related to an allegation that the driver was under the 25
influence of drugs or alcohol while a related active investigation 26
that takes no longer than 10 business days is underway; or27
(C) Any other categories the transportation network company and 28
the driver resource center may agree to as part of the agreement 29
under this subsection. 30
(iii) A transportation network company shall enter into an 31
agreement with the driver resource center regarding the driver 32
account deactivation appeals process for eligible account 33
deactivations. Any agreement must be approved by the department. The 34
department may approve an agreement only if the agreement contains 35
the provisions in (a)(iv) of this subsection. 36
(iv) The agreement must provide an appeals process for drivers 37
whose account has been subject to an eligible account deactivation. 38
The appeals process must include the following protections:39
p. 37 HB 1181
(A) Opportunity for a driver representative to support a driver, 1
upon the driver's request, throughout the account deactivation 2
appeals process for eligible account deactivations;3
(B) Notification, as required by (d) of this subsection, to 4
drivers of their right to representation by the driver resource 5
center at the time of the eligible account deactivation;6
(C) Within 30 calendar days of a request, furnishing to the 7
driver resource center an explanation and information the 8
transportation network company may have relied upon in making the 9
deactivation decision, excluding confidential, proprietary, or 10
otherwise privileged communications, provided that personal 11
identifying information and confidential information is redacted to 12
address reasonable privacy and confidentiality concerns;13
(D) A good faith, informal resolution process that is committed 14
to efficient resolution of conflicts regarding eligible account 15
deactivations within 30 days of the transportation network company 16
being notified that the driver contests the explanation offered by 17
the company; 18
(E) A formal process that includes a just cause standard, with 19
deadlines for adjudication of an appeal of an eligible account 20
deactivation by a panel that includes a mutually agreed-upon neutral 21
third party with experience in dispute resolution. The panel has the 22
authority to make binding decisions within the confines of the law 23
and make whole monetary awards, including back pay, based on an 24
agreed-upon formula for cases not resolved during the informal 25
process; 26
(F) Agreement by the transportation network company to use the 27
process set forth in this subsection to resolve disputes over 28
eligible account deactivation appeals as an alternative to private 29
arbitration with regard to such a dispute, should the driver and 30
transportation network company so choose; and 31
(G) Agreement by the transportation network company that, for 32
eligible account deactivations in which the driver or transportation 33
network company elect private arbitration in lieu of the formal 34
process outlined in (a)(iv)(E) of this subsection (4), the 35
transportation network company shall offer the driver the opportunity 36
to have the eligible deactivation adjudicated under the just cause 37
standard outlined in (a)(iv)(E) of this subsection.38
p. 38 HB 1181
(b) A transportation network company that enters into an 1
agreement with the driver resource center shall reach agreement 2
through the following steps: 3
(i)(A) For a transportation network company operating a digital 4
network in the state of Washington as of June 9, 2022, the driver 5
resource center and transportation network company must make good 6
faith efforts to reach an agreement within 120 days of an 7
organization being selected as the driver resource center under RCW 8
49.46.310. 9
(B) For a transportation network company who begins operating a 10
digital network in the state of Washington after an organization has 11
been selected as the driver resource center under RCW 49.46.310, the 12
driver resource center and transportation network company must make 13
good faith efforts to reach an agreement within 120 days of the 14
transportation network company beginning operation of a digital 15
network in the state of Washington. 16
(ii) If the driver resource center and transportation network 17
company cannot reach an agreement, then they are required to submit 18
issues of dispute before a jointly agreed-upon mediator.19
(iii) After mediation lasting no more than two months has been 20
exhausted and no resolution has been reached, then the parties will 21
proceed to binding arbitration before a panel of arbitrators 22
consisting of one arbitrator selected by the driver resource center, 23
one arbitrator selected by the transportation network company, and a 24
third arbitrator selected by the other two. If the two selected 25
arbitrators cannot agree to the third arbitrator within 10 days, then 26
the third arbitrator shall be determined from a list of seven 27
arbitrators with experience in labor disputes or interest arbitration 28
designated by the American arbitration association. A coin toss shall 29
determine which side strikes the first name. Thereafter the other 30
side shall strike a name. The process will continue until only one 31
name remains, who shall be the third arbitrator. Alternatively, the 32
driver resource center and the transportation network company may 33
agree to a single arbitrator. 34
(iv) The arbitrators must submit their decision, based on 35
majority rule, within 60 days of the panel or arbitrator being 36
chosen. 37
(v) The decision of the majority of arbitrators is final and 38
binding and will then be submitted to the director of the department 39
for final approval. 40
p. 39 HB 1181
(c) In reviewing any agreement between a transportation network 1
company and the driver resource center, under (a) of this subsection, 2
the department shall review the agreement to ensure that its content 3
is consistent with this subsection and the public policy goals set 4
forth in this subsection. The department shall consider in its review 5
both qualitative and quantitative effects of the agreement and how 6
the agreement comports with the state policies set forth in this 7
section. In conducting a review, the record shall not be limited to 8
the submissions of the parties nor to the terms of the proposed 9
agreement and the department shall have the right to conduct public 10
hearings and request additional information from the parties, 11
provided that such information: (i) Is relevant for determining 12
whether the agreement complies with this subsection; and (ii) does 13
not contain either parties' confidential, proprietary, or privileged 14
information, or any individual's personal identifying information 15
from the parties. The department may approve or reject a proposed 16
agreement, and may require the parties to submit a revised proposal 17
on all or particular parts of the proposed agreement. If the 18
department rejects an agreement, it shall set forth its reasoning in 19
writing and shall suggest ways the parties may remedy the failures. 20
Absent good cause, the department shall issue a written determination 21
regarding its approval or rejection within 60 days of submission of 22
the agreement. 23
(d)(i) For any account deactivation, the transportation network 24
company shall provide notification to the driver, at the time of 25
deactivation, that the driver may have the right to representation by 26
the driver resource center to appeal the account deactivation.27
(ii) A transportation network company must provide any driver 28
whose account is subject to an account deactivation between June 9, 29
2022, and the effective date of the agreement the contact information 30
of the driver resource center and notification that the driver may 31
have the right to appeal the account deactivation with representation 32
by the driver resource center. 33
NEW SECTION. Sec. 13. A new section is added to chapter 49.46 34
RCW to read as follows: 35
(1) Beginning January 1, 2023, a transportation network company 36
must provide to each driver operating on its driver platform 37
compensation for earned paid sick time as required by this section 38
and subject to the provisions of this section. A driver shall accrue 39
p. 40 HB 1181
one hour of earned paid sick time for every 40 hours of passenger 1
platform time worked. 2
(2) A driver is entitled to use accrued earned paid sick time 3
upon recording 90 hours of passenger platform time on the 4
transportation network company's driver platform. 5
(3) For each hour of earned paid sick time used, a driver shall 6
be paid the driver's average hourly compensation. 7
(4) A transportation network company shall establish an 8
accessible system for drivers to request and use earned paid sick 9
time. The system must be available to drivers via smartphone 10
application and online web portal. 11
(5) A driver may carry over up to 40 hours of unused earned paid 12
sick time to the next calendar year. If a driver carries over unused 13
earned paid sick time to the following year, accrual of earned paid 14
sick time in the subsequent year must be in addition to the hours 15
accrued in the previous year and carried over. 16
(6) A driver is entitled to use accrued earned paid sick time if 17
the driver has used the transportation network company's platform as 18
a driver within 90 calendar days preceding the driver's request to 19
use earned paid sick time. 20
(7) A driver is entitled to use earned paid sick time for the 21
following reasons: 22
(a) An absence resulting from the driver's mental or physical 23
illness, injury, or health condition; to accommodate the driver's 24
need for medical diagnosis, care, or treatment of a mental or 25
physical illness, injury, or health condition; or an employee's need 26
for preventive medical care; 27
(b) To allow the driver to provide care for a family member with 28
a mental or physical illness, injury, or health condition; care of a 29
family member who needs medical diagnosis, care, or treatment of a 30
mental or physical illness, injury, or health condition; or care for 31
a family member who needs preventive medical care;32
(c) When the driver's child's school or place of care has been 33
closed by order of a public official for any health-related reason or 34
has been closed after the declaration of an emergency by a local or 35
state government or agency, or by the federal government;36
(d) For absences for which an employee would be entitled for 37
leave under RCW 49.76.030; and 38
(e) During a deactivation or other status that prevents the 39
driver from performing network services on the transportation network 40
p. 41 HB 1181
company's platform, unless the deactivation or status is due to a 1
verified allegation of sexual assault or physical assault perpetrated 2
by the driver. 3
(8) If a driver does not record any passenger platform time in a 4
transportation network company's driver platform for 365 or more 5
consecutive days, any unused earned paid sick time accrued up to that 6
point with that transportation network company is no longer valid or 7
recognized. 8
(9) Drivers may use accrued days of earned paid sick time in 9
increments of a minimum of one or more hours. Drivers are entitled to 10
request one or more hours of earned paid sick time for immediate use, 11
including consecutive days of use. Drivers are not entitled to use 12
more than eight hours of earned paid sick time within a single 13
calendar day. 14
(10) A transportation network company shall compensate a driver 15
for requested hours or days of earned paid sick time no later than 14 16
calendar days or the next regularly scheduled date of compensation 17
following the requested hours or days of earned paid sick time.18
(11) A transportation network company shall not request or 19
require reasonable verification of a driver's qualifying illness 20
except as would be permitted to be requested of an employee under RCW 21
49.46.210(7). If a transportation network company requires 22
verification pursuant to this subsection, the transportation network 23
company must compensate the driver for the requested hours or days of 24
earned paid sick time no later than the driver's next regularly 25
scheduled date of compensation after satisfactory verification is 26
provided. 27
(12) If a driver accepts an offer of prearranged services for 28
compensation from a transportation network company during the one-29
hour period or periods for which the driver requested earned paid 30
sick time, a transportation network company may determine that the 31
driver did not use earned paid sick time for an authorized purpose.32
(13) A transportation network company shall provide each driver 33
with: 34
(a) Written notification of the current rate of average hourly 35
compensation while a passenger is in the vehicle during the most 36
recent calendar month for use of earned paid sick time;37
(b) An updated amount of accrued earned paid sick time since the 38
last notification; 39
(c) Reduced earned paid sick time since the last notification;40
p. 42 HB 1181
(d) Any unused earned paid sick time available for use; and1
(e) Any amount that the transportation network company may 2
subtract from the driver's compensation for earned paid sick time. 3
The transportation network company shall provide this information to 4
the driver no less than monthly. The transportation network company 5
may choose a reasonable system for providing this notification 6
including, but not limited to: A pay stub; a weekly summary of 7
compensation information; or an online system where drivers can 8
access their own earned paid sick time information. A transportation 9
network company is not required to provide this information to a 10
driver if the driver has not worked any days since the last 11
notification. 12
(14) The definitions in this subsection apply throughout this 13
section: 14
(a) "Average hourly compensation" means a driver's compensation 15
during passenger platform time from, or facilitated by, the 16
transportation network company, during the 365 days immediately prior 17
to the day that paid sick time is used, divided by the total hours of 18
passenger platform time worked by the driver on that transportation 19
network company's driver platform during that period. "Average hourly 20
compensation" does not include tips. 21
(b) "Earned paid sick time" is the time provided by a 22
transportation network company to a driver as calculated under this 23
subsection. For each hour of earned paid sick time used by a driver, 24
the transportation network company shall compensate the driver at a 25
rate equal to the driver's average hourly compensation.26
NEW SECTION. Sec. 14. A new section is added to chapter 49.46 27
RCW to read as follows: 28
(1) A transportation network company must provide to each driver 29
operating on its driver platform compensation for earned vacation 30
time as required by this section and subject to the provisions of 31
this section. A driver shall accrue 2.3 hours of earned paid vacation 32
time for every 40 hours of passenger platform time worked.33
(2) A driver is entitled to use accrued earned paid vacation time 34
upon recording 90 hours of passenger platform time on the 35
transportation network company's driver platform. 36
(3) For each hour of earned paid vacation time used, a driver 37
shall be paid the driver's average hourly compensation.38
p. 43 HB 1181
(4) A transportation network company shall establish an 1
accessible system for drivers to request and use earned paid vacation 2
time. The system must be available to drivers via smartphone 3
application and online web portal. 4
(5) A driver may carry over up to 40 hours of unused earned paid 5
vacation time to the next calendar year. If a driver carries over 6
unused earned paid vacation time to the following year, accrual of 7
earned paid vacation time in the subsequent year must be in addition 8
to the hours accrued in the previous year and carried over.9
(6) A driver is entitled to use accrued earned paid vacation time 10
if the driver has used the transportation network company's platform 11
as a driver within 90 calendar days preceding the driver's request to 12
use earned paid vacation time. 13
(7) A driver is entitled to use earned paid vacation time during 14
a deactivation or other status that prevents the driver from 15
performing network services on the transportation network company's 16
platform, unless the deactivation or status is due to a verified 17
allegation of sexual assault or physical assault perpetrated by the 18
driver. 19
(8) If a driver does not record any passenger platform time in a 20
transportation network company's driver platform for 365 or more 21
consecutive days, any unused earned paid vacation time accrued up to 22
that point with that transportation network company is no longer 23
valid or recognized. 24
(9) Drivers may use accrued days of earned paid vacation time in 25
increments of a minimum of one or more hours. Drivers are entitled to 26
request one or more hours of earned paid vacation time for immediate 27
use, including consecutive days of use. Drivers are not entitled to 28
use more than eight hours of earned paid vacation time within a 29
single calendar day. 30
(10) A transportation network company shall compensate a driver 31
for requested hours or days of earned paid vacation time no later 32
than 14 calendar days or the next regularly scheduled date of 33
compensation following the requested hours or days of earned paid 34
vacation time. 35
(11) A transportation network company shall provide each driver 36
with: 37
(a) Written notification of the current rate of average hourly 38
compensation while a passenger is in the vehicle during the most 39
recent calendar month for use of earned paid vacation time;40
p. 44 HB 1181
(b) An updated amount of accrued earned paid vacation time since 1
the last notification; 2
(c) Reduced earned paid vacation time since the last 3
notification; 4
(d) Any unused earned paid vacation time available for use; and5
(e) Any amount that the transportation network company may 6
subtract from the driver's compensation for earned paid vacation 7
time. The transportation network company shall provide this 8
information to the driver no less than monthly. The transportation 9
network company may choose a reasonable system for providing this 10
notification including, but not limited to: A pay stub; a weekly 11
summary of compensation information; or an online system where 12
drivers can access their own earned paid vacation time information. A 13
transportation network company is not required to provide this 14
information to a driver if the driver has not worked any days since 15
the last notification. 16
(12) The definitions in this subsection apply throughout this 17
section: 18
(a) "Average hourly compensation" means a driver's compensation 19
during passenger platform time from, or facilitated by, the 20
transportation network company, during the 365 days immediately prior 21
to the day that paid vacation time is used, divided by the total 22
hours of passenger platform time worked by the driver on that 23
transportation network company's driver platform during that period. 24
"Average hourly compensation" does not include tips.25
(b) "Earned paid vacation time" is the time provided by a 26
transportation network company to a driver as calculated under this 27
subsection. For each hour of earned paid vacation time used by a 28
driver, the transportation network company shall compensate the 29
driver at a rate equal to the driver's average hourly compensation.30
NEW SECTION. Sec. 15. A new section is added to chapter 49.46 31
RCW to read as follows: 32
(1) A transportation network company may not adopt or enforce any 33
policy that counts the use of earned paid sick time required under 34
section 13 of this act or earned vacation leave under section 14 of 35
this act as an absence that may lead to or result in any action that 36
adversely affects the driver's use of the transportation network.37
(2) A transportation network company may not take any action 38
against a driver that adversely affects the driver's use of the 39
p. 45 HB 1181
transportation network due to the driver's exercise of any rights 1
under this chapter including the use of earned paid sick time under 2
section 13 of this act or earned vacation leave under section 14 of 3
this act. 4
NEW SECTION. Sec. 16. A new section is added to chapter 49.46 5
RCW to read as follows: 6
The department may adopt rules to implement this chapter.7
NEW SECTION. Sec. 17. This act takes effect January 1, 2026.8
--- END ---
p. 46 HB 1181