According to the Employment Security Department (ESD), Washington’s average annual wage grew by 4.9% in 2025 to $99,810.
While increasing wages is a good thing, employers will want to take note because the 2025 average annual wage is used to calculate:
- Unemployment benefits opened on or after July 5, 2026.
- Paid family and medical leave (PFML) benefits filed on or after January 1, 2027.
- Employers’ unemployment taxes beginning January 1, 2027.
For calendar year 2027, the UI taxable wage base will increase from $78,200 to $82,000. (Washington has the nation’s highest taxable wage base). For new UI claims opened on or after July 5, 2026, the minimum weekly benefit will increase from $366 to $383 and the maximum weekly benefit will increase from $1,152 to $1,208.
Meanwhile, ESD recently reported that a solvency tax will likely be needed in 2027 and beyond. Says ESD: “As of March 31, 2026, the UI trust fund balance was approximately $3.5 billion. We project the UI trust fund balance to cover 6.7 months of benefits on September 30, 2026. This necessitates a solvency tax in 2027. We expect a continued need for the solvency tax in 2028 and 2029, which extends one year beyond previous projections in the November 2025 Trust Fund report.” The solvency tax can be up to two-tenths of one percent.
For PFML, the minimum paid leave benefit is now $100, while the maximum paid leave benefit is $1,647. Based on an average weekly wage of $1,919 in 2025, the maximum paid leave benefit will be $1,727 for new claims filed on or after January 1, 2027. The minimum paid leave benefit will remain at $100. The PFML program is facing solvency challenges that will be a topic for the 2027 legislative session. ESD is to report to the Legislature by November 2026 on the solvency of the program, including potential program changes and an economic analysis of those potential changes.
Finally, while L&I has not officially announced it yet, workers’ comp time-loss and pension benefit amounts will also increase by the increase in the average annual wage, which ultimately will impact premiums.
See this Washington Research Council article for more info.