April 2024 | Issue 48
Paid Leave: Reporting for CBA employees starts now
Do you have employees covered by a collective bargaining agreement (CBA)?
Paid Leave’s CBA provision expired Dec. 31, so you may need to file for some — or all — of your employees for the first time this month. Find the CBA provision on the Paid Leave website.
Starting with Q1 2024 reporting, you need to include CBA-covered employees on your wage report. These employees are now covered by Paid Leave. However, if the CBA existed on or before Oct. 19, 2017, and has not since been reopened or renegotiated, these employees may still be excluded from WA Cares.
How to correctly report CBA-covered employees
- If an employee works in Washington state and is covered by a CBA: Include the employee on your Q1 wage report.
- If an employee is still excluded from WA Cares due to the CBA provision: Mark the employee as “exempt” for WA Cares on the wage report.
Find the CSV file specifications and template on the Paid Leave website.
WA Cares Fund: Attend an informational webinar
WA Cares basics: what workers need to know
Join us to learn more about:
- What long-term care includes.
- How caregiving responsibilities affect families and the workplace.
- Who contributes to the fund.
- How exemptions work.
- How workers will meet contribution requirements, including a pathway for near retirees.
- And more!
Live captions and ASL interpretation will be available.
When:
1 to 2 p.m. Thursday, April 18 — Register now on Zoom.
And please visit the WA Cares Fund website.
Paid Leave and WA Cares: File for Q1
One report, separate payments
File your report
Report for Paid Leave and WA Cares at the same time on the same report. You can find the CSV file specifications and template on the Paid Leave website. The file format includes fields for your employees’ date of birth and WA Cares exemption status.
Tip: Use the “Test your file” button on that same webpage to check your report before you submit.
No payroll? Let us know by reporting “no payroll” through your Paid Leave employer account.
Make your payments
WA Cares and Paid Leave have separate trust funds, so payments can’t be combined. Be sure to file two payments — one for each program.
New to reporting? Download our Employer Wage Reporting and Premiums Toolkit from the Help Center for employers on the Paid Leave website. The guide has information about which workers participate, what hours and wages to report and how to submit reports in your employer account.
Unemployment Insurance: Don’t overpay unemployment taxes; avoid these common mistakes.
Two common mistakes could cause you to overpay your unemployment taxes:
- Reporting at the incorrect tax rate.
- Reporting the wages and hours of employees exempt under the law.
What you can do:
Update your tax software
Make sure you correctly enter anyone in your company exempt from wage reporting. Also be sure to program your correct 2024 tax rate. We send you a letter annually in December with your tax rate for the coming year. Reach out to your software’s technical support if you need help updating it.
Check with your third-party company, if you use one
If you use a third party to report taxes for you, make sure they have your 2024 tax rate and a current list people in your company exempt from wage reporting.
Review our quarterly letters
Each quarter, we send you letters when you report wages for an exempt person. If employees are no longer exempt, please let us know. You can fill out an Owner/Officer Change Form 5208C-2 (PDF. 748KB), then mail or fax it to us. The address and fax number are on the form.
What you pay unemployment taxes on
You pay unemployment taxes on your employees’ gross wages up to the taxable wage base. Learn more about the taxable wage base on ESD's website. Wages include:
- The amount each employee was paid for working, whether by a fixed salary, hourly or overtime.
- Vacation or holiday pay.
- Tips reported by the employee.
- Bonuses or prizes.
- Noncash payments, such as meals and lodging.
- Sick leave under the employer’s nonqualified plan. Visit the Washington State Legislature website to find more information in state law and rules RCW 50.04.330 and WAC 192-310-040(2).
Wages do not include jury duty pay, death benefits or sick leave under the employer’s qualified plan.
Unemployment Insurance: Remember to enter SOC codes or job titles in your tax reports
When you file your unemployment tax reports, be sure to enter for each employee one of these things:
- Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) code.
- Job title.
Starting with reports filed for Q1 2024, you may have to pay a penalty if you do not enter a SOC code or job title for each employee.
For help, visit our SOC code reporting required webpage on the ESD website.
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