A job posting violation settlement compensates applicants when a Washington posting omits required wage and benefit information. The payout equals the gross settlement minus court-approved fees, costs, administration, and service awards, divided equally among valid claimants up to the cap. That equal-share math means your check depends more on claim count and deductions than on the headline settlement total. You can estimate your share from the net fund, the per-person limit, and the filing deadline.
Table of Contents
- What Washington law allows per posting
- How the net fund splits among claimants
- Why checks come in below the maximum
- What changes your individual amount
What Washington law allows per posting
According to the Washington Senate Labor and Commerce Bill Report, applicants previously could seek $5,000 in statutory damages for each noncompliant posting. According to Morgan Lewis via JD Supra, for postings after July 27, 2025, courts can award $100 to $5,000 per violation. Morgan Lewis via JD Supra lists willfulness, deterrence need, employer size, and the law's purposes as the award factors.
Senate Bill 5408 Passed Legislature requires employers with 15 or more employees to disclose wage scale or fixed wage plus benefits in each posting. Senate Bill 5408 Passed Legislature provides a cure period from enactment through July 27, 2027. Written notice and 5 business days to correct, plus notice to third-party posters, bars penalties.
How the net fund splits among claimants
The OpenClassActions summary of the court-authorized STV settlement site defines the net fund as gross settlement minus fees, costs, administration, and service awards. That net fund is divided equally among valid claimants up to $5,000 each, as explained in the STV settlement summary. The court-authorized STV settlement administrator Simpluris estimated $1,592.71 per claimant for the King County settlement.
Claims were required by Dec. 8, 2026, with no payment until after the approval hearing Feb. 12, 2027, according to the STV settlement site.
Why checks come in below the maximum
Negotiated payouts can fall far below the $5,000-per-applicant maximum. Land Line Media reported Knight Transportation faced about $500,000 for 98 applicants but settled for $110,000.
After fees, under $51,000 remained, or about $520 each, as detailed in Land Line Media's Knight Transportation report. The Washington Senate Labor and Commerce Bill Report says Labor and Industries must attempt conference and conciliation first. It may then order actual plus statutory damages, 1% monthly interest, investigation costs, other relief, and a civil penalty to the supplemental pension fund.
What changes your individual amount
Your check shrinks as valid claims rise and grows when fees or costs come in lower. Morgan Lewis via JD Supra ties the $100 to $5,000 range to willfulness, deterrence need, employer size, and law's purposes. Use the settlement notice to estimate your payment before you decide to file.
Check these items that directly set the math: Federal EEOC discrimination settlements use different math. Cornell Legal Information Institute cites 42 U.S.C. Section 1981a for uncapped back pay, front pay, and out-of-pocket losses. Under the same statute, compensatory plus punitive damages are capped from $50,000 to $300,000 per claimant by employer size.
- Confirm the posting lacked wage scale or fixed wage plus benefits.
- Confirm you are a covered applicant with a valid timely claim.
- Subtract approved fees, costs, administration, and service awards from gross.