Washington State PTO laws guarantee two paid benefits and leave the rest to your employer. Every worker earns paid sick leave, and most workers can draw partial wage replacement through the state’s Paid Family and Medical Leave program during a serious health event or family caregiving. Vacation, holiday pay, and bereavement leave are optional benefits that exist only if your employer promises them in writing. The difference matters when something goes wrong: you can enforce sick leave and PFML rights through state agencies, but vacation disputes come down to whatever your handbook or contract says.
Paid Sick Leave
Under RCW 49.46.210, every Washington employer must provide paid sick leave. You earn at least one hour for every 40 hours worked, and all hours count, including overtime.1Washington State Department of Labor & Industries. Paid Sick Leave Minimum Requirements Part-time, seasonal, and temporary workers are all covered. You can start using accrued time after 90 calendar days of employment.2Washington State Legislature. RCW 49.46.210 – Paid Sick Leave – Authorized Purposes – Limitations
Sick leave covers your own physical or mental health needs, including preventive care, and time spent caring for a family member. Washington defines family broadly: children of any age, parents, spouses, registered domestic partners, grandparents, grandchildren, and siblings all qualify.2Washington State Legislature. RCW 49.46.210 – Paid Sick Leave – Authorized Purposes – Limitations You can also use it when a public official closes your workplace or your child’s school for a health-related reason.
There is no cap on how much you can accrue during the year, but your employer may limit carryover to 40 hours when the new accrual year begins.1Washington State Department of Labor & Industries. Paid Sick Leave Minimum Requirements If you miss more than three consecutive days, your employer can ask for reasonable verification, but only if the requirement is spelled out in a written policy.2Washington State Legislature. RCW 49.46.210 – Paid Sick Leave – Authorized Purposes – Limitations Retaliation for using accrued sick leave is prohibited.
Some cities go further than the state minimum. Seattle has its own paid sick and safe time ordinance with broader terms for workers employed inside city limits. If you work in a larger municipality, check whether a local ordinance gives you more generous accrual or usage rights.
Paid Family and Medical Leave
Washington’s Paid Family and Medical Leave program, governed by Title 50A RCW, pays partial wages when you need extended time off. It is funded through payroll premiums and administered by the Employment Security Department, not by your employer directly.3Washington State Legislature. Title 50A RCW – Family and Medical Leave Benefits cover two categories: medical leave for your own serious health condition, and family leave for bonding with a new child, caring for a seriously ill family member, or handling certain military-connected family situations.
To qualify, you must have worked at least 820 hours in Washington during your qualifying period, which is generally the first four of the last five completed calendar quarters before your claim. Hours from different employers count toward the total, so changing jobs during that window doesn’t reset the clock.
How Long You Can Take
Within a single claim year, you can take up to 12 weeks of medical leave or 12 weeks of family leave. If you have qualifying events in both categories in the same year, the combined maximum is 16 weeks. A pregnancy-related incapacity, such as prescribed bed rest or recovery from a C-section, raises the combined ceiling to 18 weeks.4Washington State’s Paid Family and Medical Leave. Find Out How Paid Leave Works
How Much It Pays
The program replaces up to 90 percent of your typical weekly wage, subject to a cap that adjusts each year. For 2026, the maximum weekly benefit is $1,647.5Washington State’s Paid Family and Medical Leave. How Paid Leave Works Most claims start with a seven-day waiting period during which no benefits are paid. The waiting period does not apply to medical leave for childbirth, family leave to bond with a new child, or family leave connected to a military exigency.6Washington State’s Paid Family and Medical Leave. Concise Explanatory Statement – Waiting Period
Starting January 1, 2026, the total premium rate is 1.13 percent of gross wages, split so employers pay 28.57 percent of the total and employees pay 71.43 percent.7Washington State’s Paid Family and Medical Leave. Updates Employers with fewer than 50 employees in Washington are not required to pay the employer share, though they can opt in.8Washington State Legislature. Chapter 50A.10 RCW – Premiums Every employee pays the employee portion regardless of company size.
PFML benefits are not subject to federal income tax withholding by the state, and the IRS has not issued formal guidance on whether the payments are taxable. Based on how similar programs in other states are treated, family leave benefits will likely need to be reported as income on your federal return.9Washington State’s Paid Family and Medical Leave. What to Know About Your 1099-G If you receive benefits, plan for a possible tax bill.
Filing a Claim
Apply through the state’s paid leave portal after creating a SecureAccess Washington account and adding Paid Leave as a service.10Washington State’s Paid Family and Medical Leave. Apply Now You will need proof of identity and any medical certification forms your healthcare provider must complete.11Washington State’s Paid Family and Medical Leave. Get Ready to Apply Once approved, you file weekly claims to keep payments coming; each filing confirms your qualifying condition continues and that you haven’t returned to full-time work.
Job Protection During PFML and How FMLA Fits
Starting January 1, 2026, employers with 25 or more employees in Washington must restore you to your same position, or an equivalent one, after approved paid leave. You qualify for that protection if you have worked for the employer at least 180 calendar days. Your employer cannot terminate, demote, or penalize you for taking leave.12Washington State’s Paid Family and Medical Leave. Job Protection Requirements for Employers
Federal FMLA is a separate program with stricter eligibility. It provides up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave, but you must have worked for your employer at least 12 months, logged at least 1,250 hours in the previous year, and work at a location where the employer has 50 or more employees within 75 miles.13U.S. Department of Labor. Fact Sheet #28 – The Family and Medical Leave Act This is where people trip up: the two programs use different employer size thresholds (25 versus 50) and different tenure requirements (180 days versus 12 months), so check each one separately. You might qualify for state job protection but not federal, or the reverse.
Washington law generally requires PFML to run concurrently with FMLA unless the employer expressly permits otherwise. Using FMLA during the same absence doesn’t reduce your state paid leave benefit; the wage replacement continues while your federal FMLA weeks count down alongside it.
Vacation, Holidays, and Bereavement
Washington does not require private employers to provide paid vacation, holiday pay, or bereavement leave. These exist only if your employer offers them through a written policy, an employment contract, or a collective bargaining agreement.14Washington State Department of Labor & Industries. Holiday, Vacation and Bereavement Leave The Department of Labor & Industries does not enforce private agreements about them.
When vacation is offered, the accrual rate, blackout periods, rollover limits, and approval procedures are entirely up to the employer. There is no state minimum and no statutory right to carry unused vacation into a new year. Your only protection is whatever your employer put in writing, so read the handbook carefully.
Washington law also does not require premium pay or overtime for working on a holiday. Time-and-a-half on Thanksgiving is a voluntary policy, not a legal obligation.
Payout of Unused Leave When You Leave a Job
There is no automatic right to cash out accrued vacation or sick leave when you separate from a private-sector job in Washington. Whether you get paid out depends on your employer’s written policy or your collective bargaining agreement. If the policy promises a payout at separation, your employer must honor it as a contract; without that promise, those hours simply disappear.14Washington State Department of Labor & Industries. Holiday, Vacation and Bereavement Leave
State government employees have a statutory guarantee. Under RCW 43.01.041, state officers and employees who resign, retire, are laid off, or die in service are entitled to a lump sum payment for all accrued vacation leave.15Washington State Legislature. RCW 43.01.041 – Accrued Vacation Leave – Payment Upon Termination of Employment That guarantee does not extend to private-sector workers.
Sick leave payouts are rare in either sector. The paid sick leave law only requires employers to carry balances forward to the next year, not to buy them back at termination. Some employers voluntarily cash out sick leave, but the statute doesn’t compel it. Check your separation policy before your last day so you know what to expect on your final paycheck.
Other Protected Leave
Domestic Violence and Safe Leave
Chapter 49.76 RCW gives every employee, regardless of employer size, the right to take reasonable leave if they or a family member experience domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking. You can use it to seek legal help, get a protective order, attend court, receive medical or mental health treatment, access shelter services, or work on a safety plan. The leave itself is unpaid, but you can use accrued paid sick leave or other paid time off to cover the absence. If you take more than three consecutive workdays, your employer can ask for supporting documentation such as a police report, court order, or written statement from a victim advocate or counselor.
Jury Duty
Washington employers must provide enough leave for you to serve on a jury and cannot fire, threaten, or retaliate against you for responding to a summons. Pay during jury service is not required, though some employers offer it. If your employer violates these protections, you can bring a civil action for damages, reinstatement, and attorney’s fees.
Military Service
Under the federal Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act, employees who leave a civilian job for military service are entitled to return to the same position and benefits afterward, so long as their cumulative military absence with that employer does not exceed five years.16Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 38 USC 4312 – Reemployment Rights Service members can continue employer-sponsored health coverage for up to 24 months while on leave. USERRA applies to all employers regardless of size and covers every branch of the uniformed services, including the National Guard and reserves.