The state of Washington has announced increases to the minimum wage rate and the exempt salary thresholds for employees, effective January 1, 2025. These increases impact several state wage requirements that you’ll want to be aware of if you have employees in Washington. The cities of Bellingham and Burien have also announced their minimum wage increases for 2025. The cities of Seattle, SeaTac, Tukwila, and unincorporated King County also have higher minimum wage requirements that will be increasing in 2025, but have not yet announced the new rates. Here’s what we know about the announced rate increases:
Statewide minimum wage: The statewide minimum wage rate for nonexempt (overtime-eligible) workers will rise to $16.66 per hour (up from $16.28, an increase of 2.35 percent), effective January 1, 2025. Details will be available on the Department of Labor and Industries (L&I) Washington minimum wage webpage once L&I updates the page.
Exempt salary: As a result of the minimum wage increase for nonexempt employees, the minimum salary for white-collar workers who are exempt from overtime will increase as of January 1, 2025, as well. Small employers with up to 50 employees must pay exempt employees a salary of at least $1,332.80 per week ($69,305.60 per year). Large employers with 51 or more employees must pay exempt employees a salary of at least $1,499.40 per week ($77,968.80 per year). For a helpful chart, see L&I’s salary implementation threshold schedule, which will be updated with these changes once L&I refreshes its resources.
The salary threshold under federal law beginning January 1, 2025, will be only $1,128.00 per week, so employers in Washington must pay at the higher state level. The threshold salary is required regardless of how many hours an exempt employee works in the week, so even a part-time employee must be paid at this new higher salary (not a prorated portion of it) to satisfy the overtime exemption. L&I has created an online overtime resource center to assist employers in understanding these salary requirements, including charts, fact sheets, workshops, and webinars.
Exempt computer professionals: The minimum salary rate for exempt computer professionals who are paid hourly will also increase as of January 1, 2025. All employers who choose to pay their exempt computer professionals an hourly rate rather than the salaried exempt rate described above must pay them at least 3.5 times the state minimum wage, which works out to $58.31 per hour in 2025. See L&I’s Administrative Policy ES.A.9.6 (Exemption from Minimum Wage Act Requirements for Computer Professional Employees).
Bellingham minimum wage: The City of Bellingham is increasing its minimum wage rate to $17.66 per hour for most employees, up from last year’s $17.28 per hour. (Note: the minimum wage will increase again to $18.66 on May 1, 2025).
Burien minimum wage: The City of Burien’s new minimum wage rates go into effect as follows:
- Level 1 employers (all employers, including franchisees, with more than 500 FTEs in King County or franchisors who employ more than 500 FTEs in the aggregate): $19.66 per hour as of January 1, 2025.
- Level 2 employers (all employers, including franchisees, that employ 21 to 499 FTEs in King County): $18.66 per hour as of July 1, 2025.
Burien’s wage ordinance doesn’t apply to employers with 20 or fewer FTEs, also known as Level 3 employers. The ordinance directs the City to create a minimum wage poster, which employers will have to prominently display once the ordinance takes effect.
Tips: The minimum wage rates in Bellingham, Burien, Seattle, SeaTac, Tukwila, and unincorporated King County continue to be higher than the statewide rate in Washington. You must pay employees at the highest minimum wage rate that applies to them. While written notice of these pay increases isn’t required except for Burien, Seattle, and Tukwila employees, advance written notice is certainly a best practice for employee retention and morale. For more information on overtime exemptions in Washington, see our Legal Guide, State Laws on the White Collar Exemptions from Overtime. If you have questions about which rates apply to your employees or whether they are exempt, contact your Vigilant Law Group employment attorney.
