Under Washington’s paid sick leave law, nearly every private-sector worker in the state earns at least one hour of paid sick leave for every 40 hours worked, and can use it after 90 days on the job for their own health, a family member’s health, certain safety needs, or a public health closure. The right comes from Initiative 1433, which voters approved in 2016 and which took effect on January 1, 2018.1Washington State Department of Labor & Industries. Paid Sick Leave It covers full-time, part-time, temporary, and seasonal workers, and it is a floor: Seattle and Tacoma layer their own stronger rules on top.
Who Is Covered
If you work in Washington for a private employer, you almost certainly earn paid sick leave regardless of how many hours you work or whether your position is permanent.2Washington State Department of Labor & Industries. Paid Sick Leave Minimum Requirements The exceptions are narrow. Licensed doctors, lawyers, and dentists are excluded, along with most executive managers who are salaried and supervise two or more full-time employees.1Washington State Department of Labor & Industries. Paid Sick Leave
If you fall into an exempt category, your employer can still offer sick leave voluntarily, and many do.
How You Earn Sick Leave and When You Can Use It
You accrue at least one hour of paid sick leave for every 40 hours you work.3Washington State Legislature. RCW 49.46.210 – Paid Sick Leave, Authorized Purposes, Limitations Accrual starts on your very first day, and your employer must track those hours and keep you informed of your balance. You cannot actually use any of it until your 90th calendar day of employment.2Washington State Department of Labor & Industries. Paid Sick Leave Minimum Requirements That waiting period is a one-time gate. Once you pass it, every hour you earn going forward is available immediately.
Some employers skip the hour-by-hour math and instead frontload a block of sick leave at the start of the year. Washington allows this, but the employer must have a written policy explaining how frontloading works and must notify employees of the arrangement.4Washington State Department of Labor & Industries. Implementing a Paid Sick Leave Policy Whatever method they use, the totals must meet or exceed the accrual-based minimum.
What You Can Use It For
You can use accrued sick leave for your own physical or mental health, including diagnosis, treatment, and preventive care like routine checkups and dental appointments. The same applies when a family member needs medical attention or preventive care.3Washington State Legislature. RCW 49.46.210 – Paid Sick Leave, Authorized Purposes, Limitations
The definition of “family member” is broader than many workers expect. It includes:
- Your spouse or registered domestic partner
- Your children, biological, adopted, foster, stepchildren, or a child you act as a parent to, regardless of age
- Your parents and stepparents, and your spouse’s or partner’s parents
- Your grandparents and grandchildren
- Your siblings
Adult children and in-laws count. So do public health closures: if a public official closes your workplace or your child’s school or daycare for health reasons, sick leave covers the missed time.3Washington State Legislature. RCW 49.46.210 – Paid Sick Leave, Authorized Purposes, Limitations And if you or a family member is dealing with domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking, the same hours can be used to seek legal help, medical treatment, counseling, safety planning, or relocation.5Washington State Legislature. RCW 49.76.040 – Domestic Violence Leave, Authorized Purposes, Employer May Require Verification
How Much You Get Paid
For each hour of sick leave you use, your employer must pay you the greater of the state minimum wage or your normal hourly compensation.6Legal Information Institute. Washington Administrative Code 296-128-670 – Rate of Pay for Use of Paid Sick Leave That second figure is meant to reflect what you would have actually earned during the hours you missed. For a straightforward hourly wage, the math is obvious. For commission, piece rate, or salaried nonexempt workers, the employer must use a reasonable method to calculate an equivalent hourly rate and must apply that method consistently across similarly situated employees.
Notice and Documentation
When you know about an absence in advance, your employer can require up to ten days’ notice, or as early as practicable if ten days isn’t possible.7Legal Information Institute. Washington Administrative Code 296-128-650 – Reasonable Notice For sudden illness, you just need to let your employer know as soon as you can before your shift starts.
Your employer can only ask for documentation when you’ve been out for more than three consecutive days. Even then, the employer must have a written policy explaining what verification looks like and must tell you about it before making the request. A doctor’s note or a personal statement can satisfy the requirement, and your employer cannot demand details about your diagnosis. If getting documentation would create an unreasonable burden or expense, a personal statement is enough.8Washington State Legislature. WAC 296-128-660 – Verification
Carryover, Quitting, and Coming Back
At the end of each accrual year, your employer must roll over up to 40 hours of unused paid sick leave into the following year.3Washington State Legislature. RCW 49.46.210 – Paid Sick Leave, Authorized Purposes, Limitations Anything above 40 hours can be forfeited unless your employer’s policy is more generous.
When you leave a job, your employer does not have to cash out your unused sick leave. But if you return to the same employer within 12 months, the company must restore whatever accrued balance you had when you left, and any days you already worked count toward the 90-day waiting period so you don’t restart that clock.1Washington State Department of Labor & Industries. Paid Sick Leave
Retaliation Is Illegal
Washington flatly prohibits any employer from retaliating against you for using paid sick leave or exercising any other right under the Minimum Wage Act. Your employer also cannot adopt any policy that counts sick leave use as an absence leading to discipline.3Washington State Legislature. RCW 49.46.210 – Paid Sick Leave, Authorized Purposes, Limitations
That second point catches many employers off guard. Attendance point systems that penalize workers for any absence, even a properly documented sick day, violate the law. Sick leave taken for an authorized reason must be carved out of any attendance policy entirely. Getting written up, losing shifts, or facing any negative consequence tied to legitimate sick leave use is illegal.
Filing a Complaint With L&I
If your employer denies your accrued leave, docks your pay improperly, or retaliates against you, you can file a complaint with the Washington Department of Labor & Industries online or by mailing a Worker Rights Complaint form.9Washington State Department of Labor & Industries. Worker Rights Complaints
You have three years from the date of the violation to file most sick leave complaints. Retaliation claims have a much shorter window: 180 days.9Washington State Department of Labor & Industries. Worker Rights Complaints Six months passes quickly. If you believe you’ve been punished for using sick leave, don’t wait. If L&I finds a violation, it can order remedies such as back pay or restoration of improperly denied hours.
Seattle and Tacoma Have Their Own Rules
The state law is a floor, not a ceiling. If you work in Seattle or Tacoma, local ordinances may give you more.
Seattle’s Paid Sick and Safe Time ordinance predates the state law and scales benefits by employer size:10City of Seattle. Paid Sick and Safe Time
- 1–49 employees: 1 hour per 40 hours worked, 40-hour carryover cap
- 50–249 employees: 1 hour per 40 hours worked, 56-hour carryover cap
- 250+ employees: 1 hour per 30 hours worked, 72-hour carryover cap (108 hours for employers with PTO policies)
Workers at large Seattle employers accrue sick leave 33% faster than the state minimum and can bank substantially more hours year to year.
Tacoma’s ordinance expands the law in a different direction. It covers salaried workers and elected or appointed officials who would otherwise be exempt under state law, and it adds bereavement as an authorized use of sick leave.11City of Tacoma. Tacoma Paid Sick Leave In either city, you’re entitled to whichever standard is more favorable between the local and state rule.
Paid Sick Leave Is Not the Same as Paid Family and Medical Leave
These two programs get confused constantly, and they are completely separate. Paid sick leave under RCW 49.46.210 is an employer-funded benefit for short-term absences: the two-day flu, a dentist appointment, a sick child. Washington’s Paid Family and Medical Leave is a state-run insurance program funded through payroll premiums, providing up to 12 weeks of partial wage replacement for serious health conditions, bonding with a new child, or caring for a family member with a serious condition. You can use both, but they have different eligibility rules and cover different situations. If you’re facing weeks of recovery from surgery or caring for a parent with cancer, paid sick leave isn’t the program you’re looking for.