Wash. Rev. Code § 49.58.010 (2026)

The definitions in this section apply throughout this chapter unless the context clearly requires otherwise.

(1) "Compensation" means discretionary and nondiscretionary wages and benefits provided by an employer to an employee as a result of the employment relationship.

(2) "Department" means the department of labor and industries.

(3) "Director" means the director of the department of labor and industries, or the director's designated representative.

(4) "Employee" means an employee who is employed in the business of the employee's employer whether by way of manual labor or otherwise.

(5) "Employer" means any person, firm, corporation, partnership, business trust, legal representative, or other business entity which engages in any business, industry, profession, or activity in this state and employs one or more employees, and includes the state, any state institution, state agency, political subdivisions of the state, and any municipal corporation or quasi-municipal corporation.

(6) "Protected class" means a person's age, sex, marital status, sexual orientation, race, creed, color, national origin, citizenship or immigration status, honorably discharged veteran or military status, or the presence of any sensory, mental, or physical disability or the use of a trained dog guide or service animal by a person with a disability, as those terms are defined in RCW 49.60.040.

Effective date—2024 c 353: See note following RCW 49.58.020.