A bill to ban unjustified employer searches of employee vehicles is scheduled for a public hearing this week.

HB 1257, sponsored by Rep. Ed Orcutt (R–Kalama), prohibits employers from searching the privately owned vehicles of employees in the employer’s parking lot or garage, and prohibits employers from requiring employees to waive their privacy rights to not be searched as a condition of employment. The bill reiterates that employees may possess any of their legal private property in their vehicle. Under the bill, employees are permitted to file complaints with the Department of Labor & Industries and the department can impose civil penalties for violations.

The bill contains several exceptions to the prohibition against employer vehicle searches, including:

• If the vehicle is owned or leased by the employer;
• Lawful searches by law enforcement;
• To prevent immediate threats to human life, heath, or safety;
• Employee consent to search for employer’s property or controlled substances;
• Security inspections mandated by state and federal military installations and facilities;
• Vehicles at state correctional institutions; and
• Employer areas subject to searches under state and federal law.

This bill arose out of instances similar to and including when an employee kept a hunting rifle in his car and was later disciplined when the gun was seen through the car window in the employer’s parking lot. City employers, as government entities, are already subject to the state and federal Constitutions in conducting employee searches and employees’ rights to privacy must be respected. However, most of the rules around employee searches are case-specific rules laid down by courts, not laid out in statute.

Dates to remember

HB 1257 is scheduled for public hearing in the House Labor & Workplace Standards Committee on Tuesday, February 2 at 10 am.