S-4198.1  _______________________________________________

                         SENATE BILL 6699

          _______________________________________________

State of Washington      55th Legislature     1998 Regular Session

By Senators Schow, Anderson, Newhouse, Zarelli, Horn, Winsley, Stevens, Benton, Rossi, Long, Sellar and Oke

Read first time 01/27/98.  Referred to Committee on Commerce & Labor.

Limiting the liability of a current or former employer who provides information about a current or former employee's work record to a prospective employer.

    AN ACT Relating to information provided by former or current employers to a prospective employer; adding a new section to chapter 4.24 RCW; and creating a new section.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1.  The legislature finds that employers are becoming increasingly discouraged from disclosing job reference information.  The legislature further finds that full disclosure of such information will increase productivity and enhance the safety of the workplace.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 2.  A new section is added to chapter 4.24 RCW to read as follows:

    An employer who discloses information about a former or current employee's job performance, conduct, or other work-related information to a prospective employer, is presumed to be acting in good faith and is immune from civil liability for such disclosure or its consequences.  For purposes of this section, the presumption of good faith may only be rebutted upon a showing by clear and convincing evidence that the information disclosed by the employer was knowingly false or deliberately misleading.

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