Amendments to Expand the Use of Paid Sick and Safe Time Effective March 18, 2020

The Office of Labor Standards (OLS) announces amendments to the Paid Sick and Safe Time (PSST) Ordinance (SMC 14.16) that increase an employee’s access to their PSST when their place of work or their family member’s school or place of care is closed.

Paid sick and safe time is employer-paid time off that employees can be used for an absence from work due to a personal or family member’s physical or mental health condition, illness, or critical safety issues.

Starting March 18, 2020, in addition to the current protected uses of PSST, employees may now also use their PSST:

• When their family member’s school or place of care has been closed.
• For a business with 250 or more full-time equivalent employees - when their place of business has reduced operations or been closed for any health or safety reason.

You can find an updated PSST COVID-19 Question and Answer resource by clicking here. Please visit the OLS Paid Sick and Safe Time Ordinance webpage for full details on this law. We are in the process of updating our comprehensive Q&A with these changes shortly.  OLS is available to provide compliance assistance by phone and email. 

Small Business and Community COVID-19 Resources

Mayor Jenny A. Durkan recently announced a relief package for small businesses in Seattle that includes deferred business taxes and a 2020 emergency fund for businesses impacted by COVID-19. The stabilization fund is designed to mitigate barriers to capital for Seattle's most vulnerable businesses. The City of Seattle is committing approximately $1.5 million in one-time Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds to the Small Business Stabilization Fund. This emergency fund provides working capital grants in amounts up to $10,000 to qualifying small businesses. Please visit the Office of Economic Development website to apply.

A central location for information about City of Seattle programs and services that may be helpful for residents significantly impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic is now available. The COVID-19: Resources for Communities webpage found here.  This page provides resources for things like food assistance, utility bill  and healthcare support, and immigration-related information. The page will be updated as more resources develop.

The Office of Immigrant and Refugee Affairs, with help from el Comité and the Northwest Immigrant Rights Project, compiled a new information guide for immigrant workers and business owners that have questions about their eligibility for newly available COVID-19 assistance programs and other issues like public charge. To find out more, please visit this webpage for information in multiple languages.

Stay updated about developments, planning, and prevention of COVID-19 by visiting kingcounty.gov/covid. Information is provided in multiple languages.

Office of Labor Standards’ Reception Area Temporarily Closed through April 12, 2020

This notice is available in Spanish here. La siguiente información está disponible en español. Simplified Chinese here. 更多简体中文.

To protect the health and safety of our staff and customers, and to help lessen the impact of COVID-19, OLS’s reception area is temporarily closed through April 12, 2020. We expect to reopen our reception area on Monday morning, April 13, but will continue to evaluate this timeline as the outbreak evolves.

We apologize for any inconvenience. We are still available to serve you:

• by phone at 206-256-5297
• by TTY by dialing 7-1-1
• online at seattle.gov/laborstandards
• e-mail laborstandards@seattle.gov

We are committed to providing accommodations for persons with disabilities and language interpretation and translation. Please contact us by phone, email, or online with your interpretation or accommodation needs.

Stay updated about developments, planning, and prevention of COVID-19 by visiting kingcounty.gov/covid. Information is provided in multiple languages.