December 2022 | Issue 28
WA Cares: Public webinars available
Learn about the benefit
Each month, the WA Cares Fund hosts a webinar on a topic related to long-term care, caregiving and the program. Recent webinars have covered support for family caregivers, long-term care planning for near-retirees, and what younger workers need to know about long-term care. Each webinar includes a brief overview of WA Cares and audience Q&A.
You can find links to the webinar recordings on the WA Cares website and sign up for the WA Cares mailing list to get updates on upcoming events.
Paid Leave: Premiums to increase in 2023
Resources for employers
Paid Family & Medical Leave benefits are an increasingly vital source of support for Washington workers. To keep pace with more people using the program, and as required by law, the premium rate will increase in 2023.
Starting Jan. 1, 2023:
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The total premium rate will be 0.8%.
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Employers will pay 27.24% of the total premium and employees will pay
72.76%.
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Employers will continue to report each employee's total gross wages, not including tips, and collect premiums up to the Social Security cap. Once an employee meets the Social Security cap, employers must stop collecting premiums but continue to report their wages.
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Businesses classified by the Employment Security Department as having fewer than 50 employees are not required to pay the employer portion of the premium. However, they must still collect the employee premium or pay the employees’ premiums on their behalf.
Next steps for employers
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Notify your employees that you will start collecting the new rate on Jan. 1, 2023.
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On Jan. 1, 2023, start collecting the new premium rate from your employees each pay period. Remember, you cannot retroactively withhold premiums from employees.
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First-quarter premiums and reports are due by the end of April 2023.
Why the premium rate is changing
Premiums, collected from employees and employers through quarterly reporting, fund the Paid Leave program. By law, we recalculate the Paid Leave premium rate annually in October. The premium rate is adjusted based on contributions from premiums and benefits paid during the previous year.
Important details:
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You can choose to withhold the entire 72.76% from your employee’s paycheck, or you can cover all or some of the premium on your employee’s behalf.
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If you are using a voluntary plan for family or medical leave, your calculations may be different. Visit paidleave.wa.gov/voluntary-plans for more.
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Premium withholdings are capped at the Social Security cap, which is updated annually. It will be $160,200 in 2023.
Unemployment Insurance (UI): Two changes coming to your fourth quarter tax report!
For your fourth quarter report, you must:
- Upgrade to the latest version of Employer Account Management Services (EAMS).
- Report Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) codes.
Join us for two instructional webinars:
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SOC code webinar — Monday, Dec. 12, 11 a.m. to noon – Register
Check out our previously recorded SOC code webinar or download our webinar presentation to review commonly asked questions and answers.
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EAMS upgrade webinar — Friday, Dec. 9, 11 a.m. to noon — Register
Watch our recent EAMS webinar or check out the slide deck.
Upgrading to the latest version of EAMS
If you haven’t done so already, you will need to upgrade to the latest version of the Employer Account Management Services (EAMS) system before you file your fourth quarter tax report.
We are gradually making more filers eligible for upgrade. If you’re eligible, you’ll see an upgrade alert after logging in. All employers will be eligible for an upgrade in time to file their fourth quarter report.
It’s easy:
- Log into SecureAccess Washington (SAW) and sign into EAMS.
- If you’re eligible to upgrade, you will see an upgrade alert at the top of the page.
- Select the link and follow the instructions.
Once you’ve upgraded in EAMS, here are a few things to know about filing your tax report:
- If you file a combined unemployment tax report for multiple employers in one file, you need to use our new bulk filing format specifications.
- If you file an unemployment tax report for yourself or one employer at a time, our format has changed. Learn more on our website.
- When you log into SAW in the future, choose the new version of EAMS to file your taxes. You won’t be able to use the old version of EAMS to file after you upgrade.
Register for our Dec. 9 webinar or watch a recorded one.
Reporting Standard Occupational Classification codes
SOC is a federal coding system that helps government agencies and private businesses compare occupational data. All employers are now required to report SOC codes when they submit their quarterly tax reports starting with their fourth quarter 2022 report.
But don’t worry! We’re here to help.
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