b'2023 WPMA State ReportL&I Proposes 4.9 Percent Increase inWIDE(Association) Workers Comp Rates for 2024continuedFarm Bureau and Trucking Association The Washington StateDepartment of Labor & Industries Sue Ecology Over Exempt Fuel Issue (L&I) is proposing a 4.9 percent increase in the average hourly rate employers and workers will pay for workers compensation Back in June,the Washington Farm Bureau (WFB) and insurance next year. If adopted, the increase would mean employ-Washington Trucking Association (WTA) filed a Petition forers and workers on average would jointly pay an additional $65 a Rulemaking requesting Ecology to initiate the rulemaking year for each full-time employee within a business.process to ensure the guaranteed exemption for agriculture Employers and workers pay into the workers compensationunder the Climate Commitment Act is facilitated and to system to fund wage and disability benefits and medical coverage develop a mechanism by which those who have been for work-related injuries and illnesses for injured workers. unlawfully charged are reimbursed.On August 11, Ecology denied the petition. In September, theESD Sets 2024 Paid Family &WFB and WTA filed a lawsuit in Thurston County challengingMedical Leave Premiumsthe denial of the Petition for Rulemaking. The lawsuit seeks toThe Paid Family & Medical Programis funded byhave the court order Ecology to engage in rulemaking that ispremiums collected from employees and employers incompliant with the CCA.Washington state. By law, the Employment Security Department Fleet Reporting Deadline Extended (ESD) recalculates the premium rate annually in October based The Department of Ecologyhas extended the deadline on program usage and premiums collected the previous year.for Washington fleet owners and operators to report their 2022Starting Jan. 1, 2024: The premium rate will be 0.74%. The rate vehicle operations. The deadline is now December 31, 2023. for 2023 is 0.8%.For more details go to https://ecology.wa.gov/air-climate/ Employers will pay 28.57% of the total premium and employees reducing-greenhouse-gas-emissions/zev?utm_medium=email&utm_ will pay 71.43%a ratio similar to 2023.source=govdelivery. Businesses classified by ESD as having fewer than 50 employ-The one-time fleet reporting requirements are as follows: ees are not required to pay the employer portion of the premium unless they opt to do so. However, they must still collect theOne-time fleet reporting requirementsemployee premium or pay employees premiums on their behalf.Based on 2022 fleet operations. More information can be found at paidleave.wa.gov/updates. Applies to private, local, state, and federal fleets, and fleets: -With 5 or more medium- and heavy-duty vehicles. Want to get involved?- With 1 or more vehicles whose corporate revenue exceeds$50 million. Join us on January 30th and 31stfor our Annual Day on - Owners that own their vehicles, and those that dispatch orthe Hill in Olympia, WA. This is where our marketer memberscontract vehicles. can come together and leverage our voice with lawmakers to work on policy issues. Its important that our legislators see ourFleets must report fleet entity, facility, or home base, and specif-industry and your businesses as personal and impacting more ics of vehicles over 8,500 pounds. than just consumers. Minimum Wage to Increase in January 30th will be a combined dinner and reception in Olympia Washington State in 2024 with WSPA. We will be on the hill all day on January 31st, and The Washington stateDepartment of Labor & Industrieswe encourage an employee or principal from every company to (L&I) announced an increase to the minimum wage to $16.28 anbe in attendance. Your voice is powerful, and we appreciate you hour. It takes effect January 1, 2024. The federal minimum wagehelping us spread our word of logic. remains set at $7.25 an hour.Save the DateCities can set minimum wages higher than the state. Seattle, Sea-Tac and Tukwila have higher wages. L&I also calculates newon your Calendar:minimum salary thresholds for overtime exempt employees based on changes in the minimum wage. This change impacts how12/7/23Holiday Party at Topgolfmuch executive, administrative and professional workers plus1/31/24 Day on the Hill, Olympia, WAcomputer professionals and outside salespeople must earn in sal-ary to be exempt from the requirement to pay workers overtime. 2/20-22/24WPMAEXPO, Las Vegas, NVThe 2024 threshold for employers is two times the minimum5/15-17/24EMA Day on the Hill, Washington, DCwage. That means an exempt employee will have to earn at least $1,302.40 a week ($67,724.80 a year). 6/17-19/24WIDE Convention, Suncadia Resort, WAS36 www.wpma.com / Winter 2023'