We alerted attendees of our Spring Employment Breakfast that the City of Seattle was conducting a survey regarding shift scheduling to consider implementing regulations surrounding shift scheduling. On August 9, the City issued its proposed regulations. Many businesses will find them onerous; at this time, the proposed regulations, if adopted, will apply only to quick […]
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Washington Court Broadens Definition of “Workers”
As our blog followers and Breakfast attendees know, the Helsell Fetterman Employment & Labor Law group has been addressing the dangers of misclassification of employees as independent contractors, and increasingly strict interpretations of who is an independent contractor. This trend is further exemplified in the new case handed down by the Washington State Supreme Court, […]
New Overtime Rule Released by the Department of Labor
On May 18, 2016, the Department of Labor released the long anticipated final regulations regarding the exemption from overtime pay. What you need to know: New rule raises the salary threshold from $455/week and $23,660/year to $913/week and $47,476/year – (estimated by DOL to affect 76,000 workers in Washington State and 4.2 million in the […]
FMLA Guide for Employers
Employers who want a quick guide to the Family and Medical Leave Act can access the newly published “Employer’s Guide to the Family and Medical Leave Act”, which is available on the DOL website. Chock full of the Department of Labor’s interpretation of the FMLA, this 76 page manual is a pretty basic reminder on […]
To Our Federal Contractor Clients
The U.S. Department of Labor recently published the proposed regulations to implement President Obama’s Executive Order 13706 that established paid sick leave for Federal Contractors. As you’ll recall, the Executive Order requires federal contractors and subcontractors to provide employees with not less than 1 hour of paid sick leave for every 30 hours worked on […]
New Requirements Under Seattle Labor Ordinances
The City of Seattle has approved a comprehensive set of amendments, the 2015 Wage Theft Prevention and Labor Standards Harmonization Ordinance to Seattle’s labor standards laws. While effective as of April 1, 2016, many of these new requirements are in “soft launch”, that is, there will be no enforcement or penalty until September 1, 2016. Some of […]
Court of Appeals Authorizes Tree Root Cutting – Ruling that Roots Trump Tree
On April 4, 2016, Division I of the Washington Court of Appeals declared that a landowner may remove tree roots that encroach onto his or her property – even if it severely damages, or possibly even kills, the tree. This decision is surprising on a number of levels. The case is known as Mustoe v. […]
New Gender Identity Discrimination Laws
Washington now has several new laws that further prohibit discrimination based on gender identity and gender expression.
Preventing Tax Scams
Despite its additional diligence, this year the IRS is predicting that we will see the highest rate of tax scams, from aggressive calls “from the IRS” asking for payment to third parties stealing your identity and filing tax returns in your name. Knowing what to look for and taking a few precautions will help you avoid these scams.
10 Questions to Ask your Commercial Lender Before Committing to a “Nonrecourse” Loan
Commercial property owners contemplating a refinance may find themselves being offered non-recourse financing through a loan that is being packaged as a Commercial Mortgage Backed Security (CMBS), otherwise known as a “securitized” loan. The financial terms are often attractive, as is the “non-recourse” feature.