Hire & Onboard: Chapter Summary

1. Although you hope a worker’s employment is a mutually rewarding experience for the individual and organization, Washington is an at-will employment state. This means a worker’s employment with your organization is not for any specified term and may be terminated by either the worker or the organization at any time, for any reason, with or without cause and with or without notice.
2. During the onboarding process of new workers, make sure to complete required paperwork including the federal I-9 employment verification and W-4 tax withholding forms.
3. Nonprofit employers are required to follow a range of laws covering anti-discrimination, anti-harassment, and anti-retaliation, meals and breaks, overtime and pay, protected leaves, and safety and health.
4. As of July 1, 2020, new Washington Overtime Rules went into effect that when fully implemented in 2028 will raise the minimum salary threshold for overtime-exemption to 2.5 times the state minimum wage.
5. Employers must display certain posters in the workplace, and all the required posters are available for free.

Capture your responses in a notebook or shared document with your team.

• How is your employer philosophy and organizational values reflected in the wage and benefits you offer workers?
• What are some steps you will take to plan for Washington Overtime Rule changes and ensure your workers are in compliance?
• With organizational and worker sustainability in mind, what are some non-required leave options you can offer?

• Explore Nonprofit Association of Washington’s Safety & Health in Nonprofits toolkit. Think about your organization’s workplace culture as it relates to safety and health and identify 3-5 ways that you can improve workplace safety.
• Expand your knowledge about sexual harassment at work with resources provided by the Washington State Human Rights Commission. Find a deeper understanding of sexual harassment, reflect on your risk factors, and learn what you can do as a leader.Learn more about workplace bullying and how you can promote the prevention and correction of abusive conduct at work with the Workplace Bullying Institute’s resources.