News

The Business and Workers update is a weekly newsletter providing news and information to help businesses and workers navigate the COVID-19 pandemic. The information is compiled by the state Economic Resiliency Team (ERT), part of the Joint Information Center at Camp Murray.

Gov. Jay Inslee issued a proclamation today at the request of the Office of Financial Management addressing increased COVID-19 related costs for certain represented employees.

The Washington State Health Care Authority (HCA) has secured more than $4 million in federal funding to respond to increased behavioral health service needs as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Gov. Jay Inslee and the state Department of Health released an update today to the Risk-Assessment Dashboard. This tool helps gauge when and how to best lift restrictions around ‘Stay Home, Stay Healthy” in Washington.

Gov. Jay Inslee issued guidance today for resuming the car wash industry under the Safe Start Phase 1 recovery plan laid out earlier this week.

Washington State Department of Health officials are alarmed by reports of “coronavirus parties” in which uninfected people are mingling with COVID-19 positive individuals to try to contract the virus

... Maintaining access to the ballot: This proclamation waives/suspends the statutory requirement that candidates for public office must submit a filing fee petition with registered voters’ signatures if they cannot afford to pay the filing fee.

Gov. Jay Inslee issued guidance today for vehicle and vessel sales, and drive-in religious services allowed under the Safe Start Phase 1 recovery plan laid out earlier this week.

Gov. Jay Inslee announced the extension of 12 proclamations today in response to the continuing COVID-19 pandemic. 

Insurance Commissioner Mike Kreidler is reminding consumers of a new federal protection that applies to how insurance companies use a consumer’s credit history.

This week, Gov. Jay Inslee and Superintendent of Public Instruction Chris Reykdal kicked off Career Connected Learning Month in Washington and as part of that effort, CareerConnect@Home will bring daily learning opportunities to students across the state. Now, every school day at 3:30 PM, students can hear from real people doing real jobs in Washington.

Some businesses could re-open as early as this week under the new COVID-19 order signed by Gov. Jay Inslee today. The state’s “Safe Start” plan is a phased approach to re-opening Washington’s economy.

Visits to the emergency room have declined in Washington and across the country since the COVID-19 pandemic began. Since we’re staying in our homes, and driving less, we may certainly be having fewer car crashes and fewer workplace or sports-related injuries. But what’s really concerning is that hospitals across the country are reporting a drop in the number of people coming to the emergency department for a heart attack or stroke.

Visitors to the Department of Health’s COVID-19 homepage may notice a change starting today, May 3 – a link to improved data visualizations.

During the week of April 19-25, there were 1,455,908 total claims for unemployment benefits filed by Washingtonians for unemployment benefits, according to the Employment Security Department (ESD).