Paid Family Medical Leave updates as of January 2026

As of Jan. 1, 2026, changes have been made to the Paid Family Medical Leave (PFML) program, a partial wage replacement benefit administered by the state of Washington Employment Security Department (ESD). PFML normally runs concurrently with the WSU administered Family Medical Leave (FML) and Disability Leave (DL) provisions.

The changes include:

Reduced leave increments: The minimum time off to claim for a PFML benefit will drop from eight to four-hour increments.
PFML employment protection: Employees who have worked for a State of Washington higher education institution or state agency for 180 calendar days and are approved for PFML will be entitled to employment protections during the approved PFML period, which are similar to FMLA protections, such as not being able to be terminated, demoted, or penalized for taking leave.
Continuing healthcare: Employees on PEBB-benefits will have their insurance maintained for any PFML-approved period that qualifies for employment protections.

For more details, visit the HRS Medical Leave and Accommodation PFML website.

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