The Washington Legislature recently voted to send the Silenced No More Act (Engrossed Substitute House Bill [ESHB] 1795) to Governor Jay Inslee’s desk for signature. As currently drafted, the proposed legislation would prohibit nondisclosure and nondisparagement provisions in agreements between employers and employees regarding “illegal acts of discrimination, harassment, retaliation, wage and hour violations, and sexual assault.” The following provides a summary of the bill’s key provisions.
Overview of the Legislation
When would a nondisclosure or nondisparagement clause be void and unenforceable?
ESHB 1795 provides that “[a] provision in an agreement by an employer and an employee not to disclose or discuss conduct, or the existence of a settlement involving conduct, that the employee reasonably believed under Washington state, federal, or common law to be illegal discrimination, illegal harassment, illegal retaliation, a wage and hour violation, or sexual assault, or that is recognized as against a clear mandate of public policy, is void and unenforceable.” (Emphasis added.) ESHB 1795 does not define “reasonable belief.”
What conduct is covered?
The legislation would apply to nondisclosure and nondisparagement provisions concerning “conduct that occurs at the workplace, at work-related events coordinated by or through the employer, between employees, or between an employer and an employee, whether on or off the employment premises.”
How are employees defined?
The...
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