Washington Requirements for Minimum Compensation and Benefits Relative to Highest-Paid Employees Initiative (2019)
| Washington Requirements for Minimum Compensation and Benefits Relative to Highest-Paid Employees Initiative | |
|---|---|
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| Election date November 5, 2019 | |
| Topic Wages and pay | |
| Status Not on the ballot | |
| Type State statute | Origin Citizens |
The Requirements for Minimum Compensation and Benefits Relative to Highest-Paid Employees Initiative (#1657) was not on the ballot in Washington as an Initiative to the People, a type of initiated state statute, on November 5, 2019.
This initiative was designed to set minimum compensation for all employees to be one-eighth of the compensation of the highest-paid person employed by any employer. It was also designed to require benefits equal in value to be provided to every employee and to require that the wages of every employee be made known to all other employees. The measure was also written with certain requirements triggered by any decreases in compensation or the closure or sale of any businesses the came about due to the provisions of this initiative.[1][2]
Text of measure
Ballot title
The ballot title for this initiative is below:[2]
| “ |
Initiative Measure No. 1657 concerns employment. This measure would prohibit employers from compensating any employee with less than one-eighth the highest compensation paid by that employer, require employers to disclose employee compensation, and adopt other provisions related to employment. Should this measure be enacted into law? Yes [ ] No [ ] [3] |
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Ballot summary
The ballot summary for this initiative is below:[2]
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This measure would require that no employee in Washington receive less than one-eighth the highest level of compensation being paid by that employer, that employers provide equal-value benefits to all employees regardless of compensation level, that wages or benefits reduced by the law be used to increase pay to lower-paid employees, and that employers disclose employee compensation rates. Employees would have a right to purchase any businesses closed, sold, or relocated because of the law. [3] |
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Full text
- The full text of the initiative is available here.
Path to the ballot
The state process
In Washington, the number of signatures required to qualify a directly initiated state statute—called an Initiative to the People in Washington—for the ballot is equal to 8 percent of the votes cast for the office of governor at the last regular gubernatorial election. Initial filings for direct initiatives cannot be made more than 10 months before the general election at which their proposal would be presented to voters. Signatures must be submitted at least four months prior to the general election.
The requirements to get an Initiative to the People certified for the 2019 ballot:
- Signatures: 259,622 valid signatures were required.
- Deadline: The deadline to submit signatures was July 5, 2019.
The secretary of state verifies the signatures using a random sample method. If the sample indicates that the measure has sufficient signatures, the measure is certified for the ballot. However, if the sample indicates that the measure has insufficient signatures, every signature is checked. Under Washington law, a random sample result may not invalidate a petition.
Details about this initiative
- Bryan Axelson submitted this initiative on January 7, 2019.[2]
- A ballot title and summary were issued for it on January 22, 2019.[2]
- Signatures for the initiative were not submitted before the deadline on July 5, 2019.[4]
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Washington secretary of state, "Initiative #1657 Text," accessed February 6, 2019
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 Washington secretary of state, "Proposed Initiatives to the People - 2019," accessed February 6, 2019
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Twitter: Washington Secretary of State Kim Wyman, "5:02 PM - 5 Jul 2019 Tweet," accessed July 8, 2019
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State of Washington Olympia (capital) |
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