Worker leave/hate crimes

AN ACT Relating to expanding access to leave and safety 1
accommodations to include workers who are victims of hate crimes or 2
bias incidents; and amending RCW 49.76.010, 49.76.020, 49.76.030, 3
49.76.040, 49.76.060, 49.76.115, and 7.69.030. 4
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:5
Sec. 1. RCW 49.76.010 and 2018 c 47 s 1 are each amended to read 6
as follows: 7
(1) It is in the public interest to reduce domestic violence, 8
sexual assault, ((and)) stalking, hate crime, and bias incidents by 9
enabling victims to maintain the financial independence necessary to 10
leave abusive situations, achieve safety, and minimize physical and 11
emotional injuries, and to reduce the devastating economic 12
consequences of domestic violence, sexual assault, ((and)) stalking, 13
hate crime, and bias incidents to employers and employees. Victims of 14
domestic violence, sexual assault, ((and)) stalking, hate crime, or 15
bias incidents should be able to recover from and cope with the 16
effects of such violence and participate in criminal and civil 17
justice processes without fear of adverse economic consequences. 18
Victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, ((or)) stalking, hate 19
crime, or bias incidents should also be able to seek and maintain 20
employment without fear that they will face discrimination.21
S-0113.1
SENATE BILL 5101
State of Washington 69th Legislature 2025 Regular Session
By Senators Valdez, Hansen, Frame, Hasegawa, Liias, Nobles, Orwall,
Pedersen, Saldaña, Salomon, Stanford, Wellman, and C. Wilson
Prefiled 12/23/24. Read first time 01/13/25. Referred to Committee
on Labor & Commerce.
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(2) One of the best predictors of whether a victim of domestic 1
violence, sexual assault, ((or)) stalking, hate crime, or bias 2
incidents will be able to stay away from an abuser is ((his or her )) 3
the victim's degree of economic independence. However, domestic 4
violence, sexual assault, ((and)) stalking, hate crime, and bias 5
incidents often negatively impact victims' ability to maintain 6
employment. 7
(3) An employee who is a victim of domestic violence, sexual 8
assault, ((or)) stalking, hate crime, or bias incidents , or an 9
employee whose family member is a victim, must often take leave from 10
work due to injuries, court proceedings, or safety concerns requiring 11
legal protection. 12
(4) Thus, it is in the public interest to provide reasonable 13
leave from employment for employees who are victims of domestic 14
violence, sexual assault, ((or)) stalking, hate crime, or bias 15
incidents, or for employees whose family members are victims, to 16
participate in legal proceedings, receive medical treatment, or 17
obtain other necessary services. 18
(5) It is also in the public interest to ensure that victims of 19
domestic violence, sexual assault, ((or)) stalking, hate crime, or 20
bias incidents are able to seek and maintain employment without fear 21
of discrimination and to have reasonable safety accommodations in the 22
workplace. 23
Sec. 2. RCW 49.76.020 and 2021 c 215 s 152 are each amended to 24
read as follows: 25
The definitions in this section apply throughout this chapter 26
unless the context clearly requires otherwise. 27
(1) "Child," "spouse," "parent," "parent-in-law," "grandparent," 28
and "sick leave and other paid time off" have the same meanings as in 29
RCW 49.12.265. 30
(2) "Dating relationship" has the same meaning as in RCW 31
7.105.010. 32
(3) "Department," "director," "employer," and "employee" have the 33
same meanings as in RCW 49.12.005. 34
(4) "Domestic violence" has the same meaning as in RCW 7.105.010.35
(5) "Family member" means any individual whose relationship to 36
the employee can be classified as a child, spouse, parent, parent-in-37
law, grandparent, or person with whom the employee has a dating 38
relationship. 39
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(6) "Intermittent leave" is leave taken in separate blocks of 1
time due to a single qualifying reason. 2
(7) "Reduced leave schedule" means a leave schedule that reduces 3
the usual number of hours per workweek, or hours per workday, of an 4
employee. 5
(8) "Sexual assault" has the same meaning as in RCW 70.125.030.6
(9) "Stalking" has the same meaning as in RCW 9A.46.110.7
(10) "Bias incident" means a person's hostile expression of 8
animus toward another person, relating to the other person's actual 9
or perceived characteristics as listed in RCW 9A.36.080(1) or 10
49.60.030(1), of which criminal investigation or prosecution is 11
impossible or inappropriate. "Bias incident" does not include any 12
incident in which probable cause of the commission of a crime is 13
established by the investigating law enforcement officer, and does 14
not include expressions of opposition or support for the actions or 15
policies of a foreign or domestic government protected under free 16
speech. "Bias incident" includes, but is not limited to, incidents 17
that are committed through online or internet-based communication.18
(11) "Hate crime" means the commission, attempted commission, or 19
alleged commission of an offense described in RCW 9A.36.080. "Hate 20
crime" includes, but is not limited to, offenses that are committed 21
through online or internet-based communication.22
Sec. 3. RCW 49.76.030 and 2008 c 286 s 3 are each amended to 23
read as follows: 24
An employee may take reasonable leave from work, intermittent 25
leave, or leave on a reduced leave schedule, with or without pay, to:26
(1) Seek legal or law enforcement assistance or remedies to 27
ensure the health and safety of the employee or employee's family 28
members including, but not limited to, preparing for, or 29
participating in, any civil or criminal legal proceeding related to 30
or derived from domestic violence, sexual assault, ((or)) stalking, 31
hate crime, or a bias incident; 32
(2) Seek treatment by a health care provider for physical or 33
mental injuries caused by domestic violence, sexual assault, ((or)) 34
stalking, hate crime, or a bias incident , or to attend to health care 35
treatment for a victim who is the employee's family member;36
(3) Obtain, or assist a family member in obtaining, services from 37
a domestic violence shelter, rape crisis center, or other social 38
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services program for relief from domestic violence, sexual assault, 1
((or)) stalking, hate crime, or a bias incident; 2
(4) Obtain, or assist a family member in obtaining, mental health 3
counseling related to an incident of domestic violence, sexual 4
assault, ((or)) stalking, hate crime, or a bias incident , in which 5
the employee or the employee's family member was a victim of domestic 6
violence, sexual assault, ((or)) stalking, hate crime, or a bias 7
incident; or 8
(5) Participate in safety planning, temporarily or permanently 9
relocate, or take other actions to increase the safety of the 10
employee or employee's family members from future domestic violence, 11
sexual assault, ((or)) stalking, hate crime, or bias incidents.12
Sec. 4. RCW 49.76.040 and 2018 c 47 s 3 are each amended to read 13
as follows: 14
(1) As a condition of taking leave for any purpose described in 15
RCW 49.76.030, an employee shall give an employer advance notice of 16
the employee's intention to take leave. The timing of the notice 17
shall be consistent with the employer's stated policy for requesting 18
such leave, if the employer has such a policy. When advance notice 19
cannot be given because of an emergency or unforeseen circumstances 20
due to domestic violence, sexual assault, ((or)) stalking, hate 21
crime, or a bias incident , the employee or ((his or her )) the 22
employee's designee must give notice to the employer no later than 23
the end of the first day that the employee takes such leave.24
(2) When an employee requests leave under RCW 49.76.030 or 25
requests a reasonable safety accommodation under RCW 49.76.115 the 26
employer may require that the request be supported by verification 27
that: 28
(a) The employee or employee's family member is a victim of 29
domestic violence, sexual assault, ((or)) stalking, hate crime, or a 30
bias incident; and 31
(b) The leave taken was for one of the purposes described in RCW 32
49.76.030 or that the safety accommodation requested under RCW 33
49.76.115 is for the purpose of protecting the employee from domestic 34
violence, sexual assault, ((or)) stalking, hate crime, or bias 35
incidents. 36
(3) If an employer requires verification, verification must be 37
provided in a timely manner. In the event that advance notice of the 38
leave cannot be given because of an emergency or unforeseen 39
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circumstances due to domestic violence, sexual assault, ((or)) 1
stalking, hate crime, or a bias incident , and the employer requires 2
verification, verification must be provided to the employer within a 3
reasonable time period during or after the leave. 4
(4) An employee may satisfy the verification requirement of this 5
section by providing the employer with one or more of the following:6
(a) A police report indicating that the employee or employee's 7
family member was a victim of domestic violence, sexual assault, 8
((or)) stalking, hate crime, or a bias incident; 9
(b) A court order protecting or separating the employee or 10
employee's family member from the perpetrator of the act of domestic 11
violence, sexual assault, ((or)) stalking, hate crime, or a bias 12
incident, or other evidence from the court or the prosecuting 13
attorney that the employee or employee's family member appeared, or 14
is scheduled to appear, in court in connection with ((an incident 15
of)) a case involving domestic violence, sexual assault, ((or)) 16
stalking, hate crime, or a bias incident; 17
(c) Documentation that the employee or the employee's family 18
member is a victim of domestic violence, sexual assault, ((or)) 19
stalking, hate crime, or a bias incident , from any of the following 20
persons from whom the employee or employee's family member sought 21
assistance in addressing the domestic violence, sexual assault, 22
((or)) stalking, hate crime, or a bias incident : An advocate for 23
victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, ((or)) stalking, hate 24
crimes, or bias incidents ; an attorney; a member of the clergy; or a 25
medical or other professional. The provision of documentation under 26
this section does not waive or diminish the confidential or 27
privileged nature of communications between a victim of domestic 28
violence, sexual assault, ((or)) stalking, hate crime, or a bias 29
incident with one or more of the individuals named in this subsection 30
(4)(c) pursuant to RCW 5.60.060, 70.123.075, 70.123.076, or 31
70.125.065; or 32
(d) An employee's written statement that the employee or the 33
employee's family member is a victim of domestic violence, sexual 34
assault, ((or)) stalking, hate crime, or a bias incident and that the 35
leave taken was for one of the purposes described in RCW 49.76.030 or 36
the safety accommodation requested pursuant to RCW 49.76.115 is to 37
protect the employee from domestic violence, sexual assault, ((or)) 38
stalking, hate crime, or bias incidents. 39
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(5) If the victim of domestic violence, sexual assault, ((or)) 1
stalking, hate crime, or a bias incident is the employee's family 2
member, verification of the familial relationship between the 3
employee and the victim may include, but is not limited to, a 4
statement from the employee, a birth certificate, a court document, 5
or other similar documentation. 6
(6) An employee who is absent from work pursuant to RCW 49.76.030 7
may elect to use the employee's sick leave and other paid time off, 8
compensatory time, or unpaid leave time. 9
(7) An employee is required to provide only the information 10
enumerated in subsection (2) of this section to establish that the 11
employee's leave is protected under this chapter or to establish that 12
the employee's request for a safety accommodation is protected under 13
this chapter. An employee is not required to produce or discuss any 14
information with the employer that is beyond the scope of subsection 15
(2) of this section, or that would compromise the employee's safety 16
or the safety of the employee's family member in any way, and an 17
employer is prohibited from requiring any such disclosure.18
(8)(a) Except as provided in (b) of this subsection, an employer 19
shall maintain the confidentiality of all information provided by the 20
employee under this section, including the fact that the employee or 21
employee's family member is a victim of domestic violence, sexual 22
assault, ((or)) stalking, hate crime, or a bias incident , that the 23
employee has requested or obtained leave under this chapter, and any 24
written or oral statement, documentation, record, or corroborating 25
evidence provided by the employee. 26
(b) Information given by an employee may be disclosed by an 27
employer only if: 28
(i) Requested or consented to by the employee;29
(ii) Ordered by a court or administrative agency; or30
(iii) Otherwise required by applicable federal or state law.31
Sec. 5. RCW 49.76.060 and 2018 c 47 s 4 are each amended to read 32
as follows: 33
(1) The rights provided in this chapter are in addition to any 34
other rights provided by state and federal law. 35
(2) Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to discourage 36
employers from adopting policies that provide greater leave rights or 37
greater safety accommodations to employees who are victims of 38
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domestic violence, sexual assault, ((or)) stalking, hate crime, or a 1
bias incidents than those required by this chapter.2
(3) Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to diminish an 3
employer's obligation to comply with any collective bargaining 4
agreement, or any employment benefit program or plan, that provides 5
greater leave rights or greater safety accommodations to employees 6
than the rights provided by this chapter. 7
Sec. 6. RCW 49.76.115 and 2018 c 47 s 2 are each amended to read 8
as follows: 9
An employer may not: 10
(1) Refuse to hire an otherwise qualified individual because the 11
individual is an actual or perceived victim of domestic violence, 12
sexual assault, ((or)) stalking, hate crime, or a bias incident;13
(2) Discharge, threaten to discharge, demote, suspend or in any 14
manner discriminate or retaliate against an individual with regard to 15
promotion, compensation, or other terms, conditions, or privileges of 16
employment because the individual is an actual or perceived victim of 17
domestic violence, sexual assault, ((or)) stalking, hate crime, or 18
bias incident; 19
(3) Refuse to make a reasonable safety accommodation requested by 20
an individual who is a victim of domestic violence, sexual assault, 21
((or)) stalking, hate crime, or a bias incident , unless the employer 22
can demonstrate that the accommodation would impose an undue hardship 23
on the operation of the business of the employer. For the purposes of 24
this section, an "undue hardship" means an action requiring 25
significant difficulty or expense. A reasonable safety accommodation 26
may include, but is not limited to, a transfer, reassignment, 27
modified schedule, changed work telephone number, changed work email 28
address, changed workstation, installed lock, implemented safety 29
procedure, or any other adjustment to a job structure, workplace 30
facility, or work requirement in response to actual or threatened 31
domestic violence, sexual assault, ((or)) stalking, hate crime, or 32
bias incidents. 33
Sec. 7. RCW 7.69.030 and 2024 c 297 s 10 are each amended to 34
read as follows: 35
(1) There shall be a reasonable effort made to ensure that 36
victims, survivors of victims, and witnesses of crimes have the 37
following rights, which apply to any adult or juvenile criminal 38
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proceeding and any civil commitment proceeding under chapter 10.77 or 1
71.09 RCW: 2
(a) With respect to victims of violent or sex crimes, to receive, 3
at the time of reporting the crime to law enforcement officials, a 4
written statement of the rights of crime victims as provided in this 5
chapter. The written statement shall include the name, address, and 6
telephone number of a county or local crime victim/witness program, 7
if such a crime victim/witness program exists in the county;8
(b) To be informed by local law enforcement agencies or the 9
prosecuting attorney of the final disposition of the case in which 10
the victim, survivor, or witness is involved; 11
(c) With respect to victims of violent offenses, domestic 12
violence, or sex offenses, to be informed by local law enforcement 13
agencies or the prosecuting attorney that charges have been filed and 14
when the defendant has been found not competent to stand trial and 15
referred for restoration services; 16
(d) To be notified by the party who issued the subpoena that a 17
court proceeding to which they have been subpoenaed will not occur as 18
scheduled, in order to save the person an unnecessary trip to court;19
(e) To receive protection from harm and threats of harm arising 20
out of cooperation with law enforcement and prosecution efforts, and 21
to be provided with information as to the level of protection 22
available; 23
(f) To be informed of the procedure to be followed to apply for 24
and receive any witness fees to which they are entitled;25
(g) To be provided, whenever practical, a secure waiting area 26
during court proceedings that does not require them to be in close 27
proximity to defendants and families or friends of defendants;28
(h) To have any stolen or other personal property expeditiously 29
returned by law enforcement agencies or the superior court when no 30
longer needed as evidence. When feasible, all such property, except 31
weapons, currency, contraband, property subject to evidentiary 32
analysis, and property of which ownership is disputed, shall be 33
photographed and returned to the owner within ten days of being 34
taken; 35
(i) To be provided with appropriate employer intercession 36
services to ensure that employers of victims, survivors of victims, 37
and witnesses of crime will cooperate with the criminal justice 38
process or the civil commitment process under chapter 10.77 or 71.09 39
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RCW in order to minimize an employee's loss of pay and other benefits 1
resulting from court appearance; 2
(j) To have access to immediate medical assistance and not to be 3
detained for an unreasonable length of time by a law enforcement 4
agency before having such assistance administered. However, an 5
employee of the law enforcement agency may, if necessary, accompany 6
the person to a medical facility to question the person about the 7
criminal incident if the questioning does not hinder the 8
administration of medical assistance. Victims of domestic violence, 9
sexual assault, ((or)) stalking, hate crime, or bias incidents , as 10
defined in RCW 49.76.020, shall be notified of their right to 11
reasonable leave from employment under chapter 49.76 RCW;12
(k) With respect to victims of violent and sex crimes, to have a 13
crime victim advocate from a crime victim/witness program, or any 14
other support person of the victim's choosing, present at any 15
prosecutorial or defense interviews with the victim, and at any 16
judicial proceedings related to criminal acts committed against the 17
victim. This subsection applies if practical and if the presence of 18
the crime victim advocate or support person does not cause any 19
unnecessary delay in the investigation or prosecution of the case. 20
The role of the crime victim advocate is to provide emotional support 21
to the crime victim; 22
(l) With respect to victims of violent offenses, domestic 23
violence, or sex offenses, such victims may attend court proceedings 24
or required interviews in person or remotely, including by video or 25
other electronic means, as available in the local jurisdiction, to 26
ensure access to justice to participate in criminal justice 27
proceedings; 28
(m) With respect to victims and survivors of victims, to be 29
physically present in court during trial, or if subpoenaed to 30
testify, to be scheduled as early as practical in the proceedings in 31
order to be physically present during trial after testifying and not 32
to be excluded solely because they have testified;33
(n) With respect to victims and survivors of victims in any 34
felony case, any case involving domestic violence, or any final 35
determination under chapter 10.77 or 71.09 RCW, to be informed by the 36
prosecuting attorney of the date, time, and place of the trial and of 37
the sentencing hearing or disposition hearing upon request by a 38
victim or survivor; 39
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(o) To submit a victim impact statement or report to the court, 1
with the assistance of the prosecuting attorney if requested, which 2
shall be included in all presentence reports and permanently included 3
in the files and records accompanying the offender committed to the 4
custody of a state agency or institution; 5
(p) With respect to victims and survivors of victims in any 6
felony case or any case involving domestic violence, to present a 7
statement, personally or by representation, at the sentencing 8
hearing; and 9
(q) With respect to victims and survivors of victims, to entry of 10
an order of restitution by the court in all felony cases, even when 11
the offender is sentenced to confinement, unless extraordinary 12
circumstances exist which make restitution inappropriate in the 13
court's judgment. 14
(2) If a victim, survivor of a victim, or witness of a crime is 15
denied a right under this section, the person may seek an order 16
directing compliance by the relevant party or parties by filing a 17
petition in the superior court in the county in which the crime 18
occurred and providing notice of the petition to the relevant party 19
or parties. Compliance with the right is the sole available remedy. 20
The court shall expedite consideration of a petition filed under this 21
subsection. 22
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