A severance agreement is normally intended to resolve all of an employee's potential claims, except those claims that cannot be waived as a matter of law. Examples would be worker's compensation and unemployment claims.

Further, Washington's silenced no more act prohibits... View More

If you wait too long to file, the statute of limitations will bar your claims. If you cannot get a lawyer, lay out the facts and all possible claims in your complaint as best you can, to protect against the statute of limitations. You can then delay serving the complaint to buy more time to seek... View More

I don't understand your statements. Did you receive a ring, pocket it and left the store without paying for it? It sounds like you were a worker at the time and so it also sounds like it was in the course of your working duties that you handled the ring. If it is on video that you pocketed... View More

Employers are required by California law to advise employees of their right to have the advice of counsel before signing a severance agreement. Failure to do so can allow the employee to void the settlement and sue the employer later.

More important, an attorney can help an employee... View More

You are entitled to use sick leave for any illness, it does not have to be a work related illness.

According the Washington State Department of Labor and Industries, employers are required to allow you to use accrued sick leave for

employees or their family members for any of the... View More

Highly unlikely. The teacher would have to have more or less intentionally allowed the conduct to occur. In most public or semi-public settings, a person is not responsible for the unlawful acts of another. For example, a bus driver is not going to be held responsible if one passenger punches... View More

Addendum - Although I previously said that it was not a case that I felt local law firms would be enthusiastic about learning more about, the fact remains that the family may want to learn about applicable timetables to take action. If the matter involves a public school system, this could mean... View More

If the parents were able to pursue a theory based on failure to supervise, it might be difficult to find a law firm that would be interested, due to the injuries being minor. I'm glad the injuries were not serious and hope the victim is okay (from a PERSONAL standpoint), but from the... View More

It is best to follow proper procedure to obtain a formal agreement for reasonable accommodations. Here is a very short set of guidelines that explains this:... View More

Thank you for the question.

Washington State employees have the right to a meal break: https://www.lni.wa.gov/workers-rights/workplace-policies/rest-breaks-meal-periods-and-schedules

You have the right to file a complaint with the state, and you're supposed to be protected... View More

Assuming you did not complain to the government, Washington's Healthcare Whistleblower Retaliation protections do not apply to you.

Nevertheless, depending on the nature of the inappropriate comments, you may still have a claim for wrongful termination in violation of public policy, if... View More

Thank you for the interesting question.

In Washington State, businesses have to pay whichever minimum wage is higher—whether that’s set by the state or by a city or county. So, if a county raises its minimum wage above the state level, companies in that area are required to follow the... View More

In Washington state, an employee is entitled to receive the highest city/count/state minimum wage based on the location of their work. This can get complicated, when remote work is involved. For example, if you work from home 2 days per week and where you live has a higher minimum wage than the... View More

Hello again - I answered your other question on point. Employers hold most of the "power" in 49 of the 50 states, plus the territories and DC. Most employees are "at will" - this means an employer can terminate an employee for zero reason, and with zero advance notice. Since... View More

I'm so sorry you felt so ill, and hope you're feeling better now.

If are an "at will" employee (no contract, no union), your employer can require a doctor's note and, I'm afraid, can terminate you if you fail to provide one (check to see if the employer has an... View More

I'm so sorry to hear about your employment issues and health problems.

You may want to try this first - you can file a complaint with a WA State agency for free: https://www.lni.wa.gov/workers-rights/workplace-complaints/worker-rights-complaints

Your former employer is... View More

I'm sorry to hear about your salary issues. Generally, there is definitely a minimum wage in WA, with very few exceptions (such as restaurant servers). You can read all the details on this page, and if you believe that your employer is wrong, you can file a complaint here, too. Also,... View More

Your employer is incorrect. The salary threshold is based on a 40 hour week, not a part-time week.

The Department of Labor and Industries provides a chart showing the required minimum weekly earnings at:

https://www.lni.wa.gov/forms-publications/f700-207-000.pdf

I'm so very sorry you're going through this. I have a lifetime of employment discrimination/sexual harassment experience, even before law school (I was a discrimination investigator at the Washington State Human Rights Commission).

First, write out a timeline for your... View More

If you believe you're being treated unfairly or retaliated against at work after reporting safety concerns, let’s break down what’s happening and explore your options. Washington State has laws in place to protect employees in situations like yours, so you may have recourse.... View More