Minimum wage exemption rulemaking in progress

The Washington State Department of Labor & Industries (L&I) is taking input from interested parties to update the rules regarding the state’s minimum wage exemptions.

Most employees covered by the Washington Minimum Wage Act must be provided:

• A minimum wage (currently $11.50 per hour);
• Overtime for working above forty hours in a seven-day workweek; and
• Paid sick leave.

However, the Minimum Wage Act exempts certain kinds of covered employees from its requirements, including Executive, Administrative, and Professional (EAP) workers. The EAP exemptions were largely intended to exempt “white collar” workers who often enjoy more economic security and relative bargaining power than lower wage earners.

L&I last updated its rules on the EAP exemptions in 1976. The 1976 rules require most workers to meet a duties test and be paid a minimum yearly salary of $13,000. Because salary levels have not been updated since then, L&I has initiated rulemaking to update these rules.

To learn more about the EAP exemptions or to submit comments, visit L&I’s EAP webpage.