by Michael Cardman, Brightmine Senior Legal Editor
Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson has signed new laws involving employee microchips, domestic workers, wage-theft penalties and more.
Two other bills – one that would prohibit noncompete agreements and another that would make state pregnancy-accommodation records confidential – are on the governor’s desk.
This table summarizes some of the most significant new measures:
| Bill | Topic | Summary | Effective Date |
| HB 1155 | Noncompete Agreements | Would ban noncompete agreements and require employers to make reasonable efforts to notify current and former workers by October 1, 2027, that any previous noncompete agreements are void and unenforceable. | NOTE: This bill was delivered to the governor’s desk on March 12. If signed, it would take effect June 30, 2027 |
| HB 2303 | Employee Privacy | Prohibits employers from requesting, requiring or coercing an employee to have a microchip implanted. Allows affected employees to sue for injunctive relief, damages and more. | June 10, 2026 |
| HB 2345 | Pay Deductions | Modifies the allocation of the employer and employee premium shares under the state paid family and medical leave (PFML) law. | June 11, 2026 |
| HB 2355 | Discrimination, Organizational Exit | Establishes labor protections for domestic workers, including coverage under the Minimum Wage Act and the Washington Law Against Discrimination, written agreements specifying a worker’s position and rate of pay, severance pay and two weeks’ notice before termination, and retaliation protections. | July 1, 2027 |
| HB 2479 | Wage Payments | Increases penalties for violations of wage-payment laws like the Minimum Wage Act (MWA) and the Wage Payment Act (WPA), and provides for tri-annual inflation adjustments starting in 2030. Also creates a Wage Recovery Program to disburse funds to unpaid employees who would experience “immediate economic harm” due to not being paid wages. | June 11, 2026, for the penalty increases; July 1, 2028, or later for the Wage Recovery Program |
| HB 2632 | Immigration | Replaces the term alien with noncitizen in several statutes, and requires all state and local statutes and other official documents enacted after July 1, 2026, to use the term noncitizen instead of alien when referring to an individual who is not a citizen or national of the United States (unless alien is required to comply with federal law or funding requirements). | June 10, 2026 |
| SB 5874 | Unemployment Taxes | Allows the Washington Department of Labor & Industries (L&I) to waive penalties for “minor or insignificant reporting errors” on required quarterly tax and wage reports such as inadvertent software errors. | June 11, 2026 |
| SB 6014 | Maternity and Pregnancy | Would make confidential certain L&I records containing personal information about employees or job applicants who have filed a complaint, requested assistance or participated in an investigation related to pregnancy-related workplace accommodations. | NOTE: This bill was delivered to the governor’s desk on March 10. If signed, it would take effect January 1, 2027 |
| SB 6183 | Health Care Benefits | Requires health carriers to cover all FDA-approved HIV antiviral drugs without prior authorization, step therapy or any other utilization-management protocols in all health plans issued or renewed on or after January 1, 2027. | June 10, 2026 |
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About the author
Michael Cardman
Senior Legal Editor, Brightmine
Michael Cardman has more than 20 years of experience in publishing and has specialized in employment law for more than 15 years. As a member of the Brightmine editorial team, he focuses on wage and hour compliance, including minimum wage, overtime, employee classification, hours worked, independent contractors and child labor.
Michael holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in English from the University of Virginia. Prior to joining Brightmine, he was the managing editor for Thompson Publishing Group’s library of HR publications. In this role, he was responsible for overseeing books, manuals and online tools covering a variety of topics such as wage and hour, employee leaves, employee benefits and compensation.
Connect with Michael on LinkedIn.
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