Dairy Workers in State of Washington Can Now Earn Overtime

What's new:

On November 5, 2020, the Washington Supreme Court held that dairy workers are entitled to get overtime pay.  

Under state law, dairies did not have to pay their workers overtime for working more than 40 hours.  The Court found this state law was unconstitutional.

What does this mean for me?

If you are a dairy worker in the state of Washington, from now on when you work more than 40 hours in a week, your employer must pay you time and a half for all the additional hours you worked.

Can all farm workers earn overtime pay now?

It is not clear. The Court did not make any decision as to other agricultural workers.   

I am a dairy worker. Can I get overtime for hours I worked before November 5?

We don't have an answer to this yet. The court has not yet decided if dairy workers who were not part of the lawsuit could get retroactive overtime pay. We will update this information once the Court issues a decision.      
 

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Northwest Justice Project

Wenatchee
300 Okanogan Avenue Suite 3-A
Wenatchee, WA 98801
(509) 664-5101
1-888-201-1021

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Yakima, WA 98901
(509) 574-4234 or 1-888-201-1018

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Bellingham, WA 98225
(360) 734-8680 or 1-800-562-8836

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Pasco, WA 99301
(509) 547-2760 or 1-800-310-6076

CLEAR Legal Hotline 1-888-201-1014

Columbia Legal Services

Wenatchee
300 Okanogan Avenue Suite 2-A
Wenatchee, WA 98801
(509) 662-9681 or 1-800-572-9615

Yakima
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6 South 2nd Street
Yakima, WA 98901
(509) 575-5593 or 1-800-572-1323

Tri Cities
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Kennewick, WA 99336
(509) 374-9855 or 1-888-201-9735