Washington’s posting rules look short, and that is exactly what catches employers out. The state core is just three L&I posters, so it is tempting to treat a set of Washington labor law posters as a one-time errand. But the wage figure on those notices changes every January, several other state agencies require their own notices, and local cities run minimum wages well above the state floor. The list is short; staying current with it is not.
Picture a Seattle-area employer who hung the three L&I posters when the business opened and considered the job done. Two things have since drifted. The state minimum wage rose to $17.13 on January 1, so the posted wage information is a year behind, and the business sits in a city whose local minimum wage runs higher than the state rate, which the state poster never mentioned. Both notices are technically on the wall, which is why the gap went unnoticed until someone actually read the wage figure.
This guide covers what Washington employers must post in 2026: the required L&I notices, the other state notices, the $17.13 minimum wage with its source, the local layer in cities like Seattle and SeaTac, the federal notices every employer also owes, the penalties, and where to get the posters.
Washington’s 2026 minimum wage (what your wage notice must reflect)
Washington indexes its minimum wage to inflation, and it rose again on January 1, 2026. According to the Washington State Department of Labor & Industries, the rate is $17.13 per hour for workers 16 and older, a 2.8 percent increase over the 2025 rate of $16.66. The “Your Rights as a Worker” poster carries this figure, so it has to be replaced whenever the rate moves. For how Washington compares nationally, see the minimum wage by state overview.
| Category | 2025 | 2026 (current) | Authority |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard minimum wage (16+) | $16.66/hour | $17.13/hour | WA Minimum Wage Act; RCW 49.46 |
| Minors (14-15 years old) | 85% of standard | $14.56/hour (85%) | WA Minimum Wage Act; RCW 49.46 |
| Tip credit | None allowed | None allowed | RCW 49.46 (tips on top of wage) |
| Exempt salary threshold | 2.0x-2.25x min wage | $80,168.40/year (2.25x) | WAC 296-128 (overtime exemption) |
Because the rate is recalculated by L&I every September and takes effect each January, the wage notice is a moving target rather than a fixed document. A current Washington minimum wage poster reflects the figure in force for the year.
The three required L&I posters
The core of Washington’s requirement is a set of notices from the Department of Labor & Industries, posted where employees can read them. A current Washington labor law posters set gathers these state notices onto one board. The three L&I-required posters are:
| L&I poster | Form number | Required by |
|---|---|---|
| Your Rights as a Worker | F700-074-000 | WAC 296-126-080 |
| Job Safety and Health Law | F416-081-909 | RCW 49.17.220(1) |
| Notice to Employees: If a Job Injury Occurs | F242-191-909 (or F207-037-909 if self-insured) | RCW 51.14.100 |
The “Your Rights as a Worker” notice is the one that carries the minimum-wage figure, paid sick leave rights, and other wage-and-hour standards, which is why it is the poster most likely to be out of date. The job-injury notice also has two versions, and self-insured employers must post the self-insured version rather than the standard one, a small distinction that is easy to get wrong.
Other Washington state notices to confirm
Beyond the three L&I posters, several other state requirements apply depending on coverage and how your business is insured. Confirm each against your situation:
- Workers’ compensation certificate. A certificate of coverage posted conspicuously at each business location.
- Unemployment benefits notice. Employment Security Department information for employees on benefit eligibility.
- Washington Paid Family and Medical Leave. Employment Security Department notice on the state PFML program.
- Pregnant workers’ accommodation rights. State accommodation protections for pregnancy and related conditions.
- Paid sick leave. Covered within the “Your Rights as a Worker” notice; confirm the current version.
Several of these come from agencies other than L&I, which is why a single source rarely covers the full set, and why employers operating in multiple states often standardize on state labor law posters assembled per jurisdiction rather than piecing notices together agency by agency.
If you also run locations outside Washington, each state needs its own set: the California labor law posters, Texas labor law posters, and Florida labor law posters pages are the ones meant for those states.
The local layer: Seattle, SeaTac, and other cities
Washington lets local governments set minimum wages above the state rate, and several cities do, by a wide margin. Seattle, SeaTac, Tukwila, Renton, Burien, and Everett all run higher local minimums in 2026, each with its own notice. An employer in one of those cities owes the local wage and its posting on top of the state set, which is why city and county labor law posters matter for any Washington business with an urban location.
This local layer is where the real exposure sits for Seattle-area employers. The state poster can be perfectly current while a city wage notice is missing or showing the wrong figure, because the state board says nothing about local rates. A state poster does not cover a city ordinance, and the difference between the state rate and a Seattle-area rate is large enough that paying the state minimum in a higher-wage city is both a wage violation and a posting gap at once.
The federal layer every Washington employer also owes
Washington posting sits on top of the federal floor. Every Washington employer with covered staff also owes the federal notices, most simply covered by an attorney-reviewed federal labor law poster set. Note that Washington runs its own OSHA-approved safety plan (DOSH), so the state “Job Safety and Health Law” poster stands in for the federal OSHA notice.
The full federal set is detailed in the companion federal labor law poster requirements checklist.
| Federal notice | Who must post | 2026 failure-to-post penalty |
|---|---|---|
| FLSA Minimum Wage | Nearly all employers | No direct fine; tolling risk |
| EPPA (Polygraph) | Most private employers | Up to $26,262 per violation |
| USERRA | All employers | No fixed monetary posting fine |
| EEO “Know Your Rights” | Employers with 15+ employees | $698 per violation |
| FMLA | Employers with 50+ employees | $216 for willful failure to post |
Law versus reality: Washington posting
The short Washington list creates a false sense of being finished. The gaps are predictable.
| What the rule says | What actually happens in practice |
|---|---|
| Post the three L&I notices for employees to read. | They go up once and the wage figure on them is never refreshed as the rate climbs each January. |
| Self-insured employers post the self-insured injury notice. | A self-insured business posts the standard state-fund version instead, which is the wrong notice. |
| Local wages can exceed the state rate. | A Seattle-area employer posts and pays the state $17.13 in a city whose minimum is higher. |
| State notices come from several agencies. | An employer gets the L&I set and misses the Employment Security PFML or unemployment notice. |
Penalties: how Washington enforces posting
Washington does not levy one universal fine for every missing poster. L&I enforces the state notices through citations and corrective action, certain statutes carry their own penalties, and a missing or wrong notice can undercut an employer in a wage claim. The Washington State Department of Labor & Industries publishes the required-poster list and current versions.
The federal notices a Washington employer also displays carry their own exact penalties, and these are the operative 2026 figures. The usual January inflation adjustment was cancelled for 2026 because the October 2025 government shutdown stopped the inflation data the formula requires, so the Department of Labor confirmed the maximums match 2025.
| Posting violation | 2026 maximum penalty | Statutory / CFR citation | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| OSHA posting requirement (federal) | $16,550 per violation | 29 USC 666(i); 29 CFR 1903.15(d)(6) | OSHA |
| OSHA willful or repeated (federal) | $165,514 per violation | 29 USC 666(a) | OSHA |
| EPPA (includes posting) | $26,262 per violation | 29 USC 2005(a); 29 CFR 801.42(a) | WHD |
| EEO posting (Know Your Rights) | $698 per violation | 42 USC 2000e-10 | EEOC |
| FMLA willful failure to post | $216 per offense | 29 USC 2619(b); 29 CFR 825.300(a) | WHD |
| FLSA poster (stale or missing) | No direct fine; tolling risk | 29 CFR 516.4 | DOL |
The Washington posting checklist
- Post the three L&I notices, choosing the self-insured injury notice if you are self-insured.
- Replace the “Your Rights as a Worker” poster whenever the minimum wage changes (each January).
- Confirm the other state notices: workers’ comp certificate, unemployment, PFML, pregnancy accommodation.
- Add the local wage notice for any city (Seattle, SeaTac, Tukwila, Renton, Burien, Everett) where you operate.
- Post the federal notices that apply at your headcount.
- Deliver the same notices to remote Washington employees electronically and keep a record.
Employers who would rather not track the state, local, and federal layers separately often use a labor law poster compliance service so a Washington rule change triggers a replacement automatically.
Conclusion
Washington’s poster list is short enough to feel finished after one trip to the wall, and that is the trap. The three L&I notices are the start, not the whole job: the wage figure on them moves every January, several other agencies require their own notices, and Seattle-area cities run higher minimums with their own postings.
So treat the short list as a recurring obligation rather than a one-time errand. Post the L&I set with the right injury notice, layer in the other state and local notices that apply to you, keep the federal set current alongside them, and re-check every January when the wage rate changes. Whether you assemble that yourself or hand it to a managed service, the wage figure is the thing that will date your wall first.
FAQs
What posters are required in Washington State for 2026?
The core requirement is three L&I posters: Your Rights as a Worker, Job Safety and Health Law, and Notice to Employees If a Job Injury Occurs. Employers also owe other state notices such as workers’ compensation, unemployment, Paid Family and Medical Leave, and pregnancy accommodation, plus the applicable federal notices.