Under the Washington Law Against Discrimination (WLAD), what is the definition of “employment agency”? Here’s my point of view.
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WASHINGTON LAW AGAINST DISCRIMINATION (WLAD)
The WLAD is a potent statute enacted in 1949, and it covers a broad array of categories, including the following:
Freedom from discrimination—Declaration of civil rights.
(1) The right to be free from discrimination because of race, creed, color, national origin, citizenship or immigration status, sex, honorably discharged veteran or military status, sexual orientation, or the presence of any sensory, mental, or physical disability or the use of a trained dog guide or service animal by a person with a disability is recognized as and declared to be a civil right. This right shall include, but not be limited to:
(a) The right to obtain and hold employment without discrimination;
(b) The right to the full enjoyment of any of the accommodations, advantages, facilities, or privileges of any place of public resort, accommodation, assemblage, or amusement;
(c) The right to engage in real estate transactions without discrimination, including discrimination against families with children;
(d) The right to engage in credit transactions without discrimination;
(e) The right to engage in insurance transactions or transactions with health maintenance organizations without discrimination: PROVIDED, That a practice which is not unlawful under RCW 48.30.300, 48.44.220, or 48.46.370 does not constitute an unfair practice for the purposes of this subparagraph;
(f) The right to engage in commerce free from any discriminatory boycotts or blacklists … ; and
(g) The right of a mother to breastfeed her child in any place of public resort, accommodation, assemblage, or amusement.
RCW 49.60.030(1) (emphasis, paragraph formatting, and hyperlinks added). The WLAD regulates, inter alia, employment agencies.
DEFINITION OF EMPLOYMENT AGENCY
The WLAD defines employment agency as follows:
…
(12) “Employment agency” includes any person undertaking with or without compensation to recruit, procure, refer, or place employees for an employer.
RCW 49.60.040(12) (hyperlinks added).
UNFAIR PRACTICES OF EMPLOYMENT AGENCIES
Employment agencies meeting the WLAD definition are prohibited from engaging in specific unfair practices in employment. The relevant provisions of the WLAD state as follows:
RCW 49.60.200
Unfair practices of employment agencies.
It is an unfair practice for any employment agency to fail or refuse to classify properly or refer for employment, or otherwise to discriminate against, an individual because of age, sex, marital status, sexual orientation, race, creed, color, national origin, citizenship or immigration status, honorably discharged veteran or military status, or the presence of any sensory, mental, or physical disability or the use of a trained dog guide or service animal by a person with a disability,
[or]
… to print or circulate, or cause to be printed or circulated any statement, advertisement, or publication, or to use any form of application for employment, or to make any inquiry in connection with prospective employment, which expresses any limitation, specification or discrimination as to age, sex, race, sexual orientation, creed, color, or national origin, citizenship or immigration status, honorably discharged veteran or military status, or the presence of any sensory, mental, or physical disability or the use of a trained dog guide or service animal by a person with a disability, or any intent to make any such limitation, specification, or discrimination, unless based upon a bona fide occupational qualification: PROVIDED, Nothing contained herein shall prohibit advertising in a foreign language.
RCW 49.60.200 (hyperlinks, emphasis, and paragraph formatting added).
WLAD REMEDIES
Victims of discrimination in violation of the WLAD may seek generous remedies. “Any person deeming himself or herself injured by any act in violation of … [the Washington Law Against Discrimination] shall have a civil action in a court of competent jurisdiction to enjoin further violations, or to recover the actual damages sustained by the person, or both, together with the cost of suit including reasonable attorneys’ fees or any other appropriate remedy authorized by this chapter or the United States Civil Rights Act of 1964 as amended, or the Federal Fair Housing Amendments Act of 1988 (42 U.S.C. Sec. 3601 et seq.).” RCW 49.60.030(2).
READ MORE ABOUT THIS TOPIC
Read our post entitled: Remedies for Employment Discrimination in WA State. The external link will take you to our Williams Law Group Blog.
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-gw