The City of Seattle Office of Labor Standards – Employers Beware

During Covid and its direct aftermath the City of Seattle stepped up its enforcement of the wage and hour laws passed by the Seattle City Council.  This included more investigations, more citations to small employers, and generally more aggressive enforcement actions. Although businesses struggled mightily to stay open due to Covid, there was no de-emphasis or de-escalation of these rules or their enforcement by the OLS.  

Three Areas Targeted by OLS

1. Minimum Wage: Seattle has a higher minimum wage than the federal level, which varies based on the size of the business and whether the employer pays towards medical benefits1. Ensure you are paying your employees at least the minimum wage required by the city.

2. Paid Sick and Safe Time (PSST): Employees are entitled to accrue paid sick and safe time based on the number of hours worked. This time can be used for personal or family illness, medical appointments, or safety reasons related to domestic violence1.

3. Wage Theft Prevention: Employers must provide employees with written information about their pay and ensure timely and accurate payment of wages. This includes providing itemized pay statements and maintaining payroll records. This area includes compliance with break rules, vacation time, and other aspects of “wage theft” unrelated to wages.

 City of Seattle OLS – What Can it Do to Your Business?

1. Investigations: The OLS can initiate investigations based on complaints or proactively if they believe a violation has occurred. They have the authority to request documents, interview employees, and inspect workplaces for violations. What is less known is that the OLS has the power to find violations based on a negative presumption if it determines that a targeted employer did not fully respond to a records request by a subpoena. 

2. Subpoenas: The OLS can issue subpoenas to compel the production of documents or testimony if necessary for their investigations. Unlike most subpoenbas in civil actions, the administrative agency not the courts determine whether the subpoena has been complied with and rather than defaulting to the least severe sanction available, the OLS determines the sanction and then has the power to enforce it in Seattle Municipal Court.

3. Penalties and Remedies: If violations are found, the OLS can impose penalties and require remedies such as back pay, damages, and fines. They can also negotiate settlements between employers and employees and if they feel as if the employer has established a pattern of short payment of wages, paying less than minimum wage, or failed to ensure its employees are taking the City mandated breaks, the Director of the OLS can render what amounts to an administrative judgment and step into the shoes of former employees who have never filed a complaint.  This can result in the entry of judgment against an employer by the Seattle Municipal Court for amounts owing to employees who have never filed a complaint, never interviewed, and who were never a party to the enforcement action.

4. Public Disclosure: The OLS may publicly disclose the results of investigations and enforcement actions, which can impact an employer’s reputation

Conclusion

In addition to paying their employees the current minimum wage, it is advisable that employers, subject to the authority of the OLS modify their business practices to emphasize extraordinarily accurate record keeping of hours worked, breaks, and vacation time earned and accrued. In the event of an investigation or enforcement action should consider retention of counsel to ensure a complete and accurate response but certainly obtain legal counsel in the event of a citation so that default can be avoided and an aggressive defense established and maintained until resolution.