Washington State's Equal Pay and Opportunities Act was established to bring fairness among workers by prohibiting discrimination based on an employee’s gender or membership in one or more protected classes when it comess to pay and career advancement. The law also aims to fight and address buisness practices that contribute to income disparities.
Here is everything you need to know:
Washington State divides the Equal Pay & Opportunities Act into three key areas:
As of July 1st, 2025, there have been additional updates to this law that employers should be aware of.
As of July 1st, 2025, the following updates to the Equal Pay & Opportunities Act have gone into effect:
As of July 27th, 2025, the following updates to the Equal Pay & Opportunities Act are effective:
The employee protections part of this law relates to general discrimination regarding an employee's pay or career advancement opportunities. Specifically, the law states that it is illegal to "base an employee's pay or career advancement opportunities on an employee’s gender or membership in a protected class".
As of July 1st, 2025, protected classes in Washington include:
Violations regarding equal page can land employers in serious trouble, including a misdemeanor charge.
Differences in compensation or career advancement opportunities among employees may be acceptable if the difference is based on justifiable factors such as:
Employers must be able to provide proof to justify any differences in compensation or career advancement opportunities.
Under this law, employers may not prohibit employees (including non-disclosure agreements) from disclosing, comparing, or talking about their wages or the wages of other employees. However, they may require those who have access to other employees' wage information as part of their job duties to keep that information confidential.
Lastly, employers mat not retaliate against or otherwise take adverse action against an employee for talking about wages, filing a complaint, or using any other right under the Equal Pay and Opportunities Act.
Under this law, employers are prohibited from inquiring as to the the wage or salary history of an applicant until after an offer is accepted by the applicant. However, applicants may voluntarily disclose their wage or salary history.
It is also unlawful for an employer to require an applicant's prior wage or salary history to meet certain criteria as a condition for employment.
Also known as Washington Pay Transparency Law, the job posting provisions of the Equal Pay & Opportunities Act apply to employers with 15 or more employees.
Covered employers must include a wage scale or salary range, a general description of all benefits, and a general description of other compensation in job postings. However, as of July 1st, 2025, employers who fail to do so will be given a chance to correct their mistake before being assessed a penalty (until July 27th, 2027).
If an employer only offers a single, fixed wage or salary amount for a new position or promotion, then the fixed compensation must be disclosed rather than a scale or range.
A job posting is defined as "any solicitation, including recruitment done directly by an employer or indirectly through a third party, intended to recruit job applicants". It must also include an electronic or printed hard copy, the qualifications for desired applicants, and the specific available position.
Postings do not include solicitations published without an employer’s consent.
An employee who is offered a transfer or internal promotion must be provided with the wage scale or salary range of the new position. If the new position has a fixed wage / salary amount, then the fixed compensation amount must be provided rather than the scale or range.
Complying with the state's equal pay and opportunity laws are becoming increasingly important, as well as increasingly complex. Keeping up with the changes and requirements will not only keep your business out of trouble, but it will make employee onboarding go much smoother as well, allowing you to stay focused on tasks such as reporting new hires in Washington State.
For more help understanding Washington Pay Transparency requirements or help with compliance and employee recruitment software, contact PayNW today.