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SB 5041

Concerning unemployment insurance benefits for striking or lockout workers.

2025-2026 Regular Session Introduced by Jess Bateman and 18 co-sponsors

Temporary expansion of unemployment benefits for strike or lockout workers, with a six-week cap and new employer charging and PERC mediation provisions.

Effective date 7/27/2025*.
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Bill Summary · SB 5041

Summary — SB 5041 (2025)

Concerning unemployment insurance benefits for striking or lockout workers

Status
- Enacted (Chapter 352, 2025 Laws). Governor signed 5/19/2025. Effective date: 7/27/2025*. (Bill text also references other effective dates in earlier drafts; this summary reflects enacted provisions.)

Purpose / Intent
- Temporarily modify Washington’s unemployment insurance (UI) rules so that certain workers who are unemployed because of a strike or an employer‑initiated lockout may qualify for limited UI benefits, while creating related administrative, employer‑charging, and dispute‑resolution provisions. The changes are time‑limited (sunset provisions through 2035 in earlier drafts).

Key provisions (final enacted bill)
1. Strike-related UI eligibility
- A worker unemployed due to a strike is disqualified initially, but the disqualification ends on the earlier of:
- the second Sunday after the strike’s first day (provided the strike is not later found to be unlawful by final judgment), or
- the date the strike is terminated.
- After the disqualification ends the claimant must satisfy the standard one‑week waiting period and other eligibility rules.
- Weekly UI benefits for an individual unemployed due to a strike are limited to a maximum number of calendar weeks (the enrolled bill limits this to six weeks). Weeks of UI received for reasons unrelated to the strike do not count toward this cap.
- If a final judgment finds the strike was unlawful or the worker later receives retroactive wages/back pay for covered weeks, ESD must issue an overpayment assessment and seek recovery per existing law.

  1. Lockout-related UI eligibility

    • The statutory disqualification that previously barred UI where a lockout was initiated by a multi‑employer bargaining‑unit member (after another employer in the unit was struck) is removed for the covered period — enabling locked‑out workers to qualify for UI.

  2. Employer charging and mitigation

    • For contribution‑paying (taxable) employers, benefits paid to striking workers are charged in specified ways (the bill provides rules on whether benefits are charged to the separating employer’s experience account or to base‑year employers depending on claim type).
    • The Employment Security Department (ESD) must evaluate whether an employer charged benefits because of a strike qualifies for the Voluntary Contribution Program (a mechanism some employers use to reduce experience rating increases by reimbursing the trust fund) and notify eligible employers.

  3. Dispute‑resolution and PERC

    • If ESD issues benefits because of a strike, ESD must notify the separating employer of mediation services available through the Public Employment Relations Commission (PERC).
    • The law authorizes PERC to charge fees for private‑sector dispute‑resolution services when federal mediation (FMCS) is impracticable or unavailable; it creates a dedicated account for those fees and repeals an outdated funding provision.

  4. Reporting and sunsets (as considered in committee reports)

    • Earlier committee language required annual ESD reporting (beginning 12/31/2025) on strike prevalence and UI Trust Fund impacts through 2035. (Enacted bill retains several reporting and expiration elements in various forms; readers should consult the enrolled chapter for exact reporting and sunset language.)

Financial and administrative notes
- No direct appropriation included in initial drafts; fiscal notes were requested/available during consideration.
- The bill includes provisions affecting how UI costs are charged among employers (which can affect employer payroll tax experience ratings) and established authority for fee accounts at PERC.
- Several alternative funding and eligibility amendments were proposed during debate (examples: requiring benefits for striking workers be paid from a union‑funded account or state general fund; narrower exemptions for certain public‑sector or critical‑service strikes); most were not adopted.

Who is affected
- Workers who participate in strikes or who are locked out in multi‑employer bargaining situations (may become eligible for limited UI weeks under the new rules).
- Employers: taxable employers and reimbursable employers may be affected through how benefit costs are charged to experience accounts or to base‑year employers; some employers may be notified of mediation options or eligible for voluntary contribution relief.
- ESD and PERC: new duties for notifications, evaluations, dispute‑resolution fee authority, and administration of accounts.

Effective period / sunset
- The bill was enacted in 2025; many drafts included expiration/temporary windows (commonly through December 31, 2035). Consult the enrolled chapter (Chapter 352, 2025 Laws) for precise sunset/expiration language and any section‑by‑section effective dates.

Where to read the law
- Engrossed Substitute Senate Bill 5041 (Chapter 352, 2025 Laws) — see the official enrolled bill/chapter for the definitive statutory text, precise charging rules, overpayment procedures, any reporting requirements, and the exact sunset/section effective dates.

Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.

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