Starting January 1, 2026, Washington State’s Paid Family Medical Leave (PFML) program will expand job protection requirements to include employers with 25 or more employees, including those with voluntary plans.
Currently, only employers with 50 or more employees must provide job protection when workers return from PFML. The law that passed this last session broadens this requirement, meaning employers will need to update their leave and return-to-work policies.
If you have 25 or more Washington employees, you must restore employees to the same or equivalent job title, pay, benefits, and working conditions if employees both (note the number of employees is reduced annually until it gets to eight in 2028):
· Return from PFML on or after January 1, 2026.
· Started working for the business at least 180 days before their leave began.
Additional employer responsibilities under the new law include:
· Maintain employee health insurance during PFML as if they were still actively working.
· Notify your employee after they are on PFML for a total of 14 days about when their job protection will expire and when they are expected to return to work.
The new law removes the requirement that employees need to work a minimum number of hours before taking leave to get job protection.
Job protection applies if your business had 25 or more Washington-based employees at any point during the current or previous calendar year. This count is separate from the “business size calculation” used for premium assessments.
Employment Security Department will release additional resources to help employers prepare on the PFML website, which will include:
· Job protection examples and templates.
· Guidance about managing job protection when an employee is also using FMLA (Family Medical Leave Act).
· Small business assistance grants that can help with costs related to these law changes.
· Reduced requirement for missed number of work hours for employees on leave.
· The 2026 premium rate, Social Security cap and weekly benefit amount.
Questions? Contact AGC’s Michele Willms.