Z-643                 _______________________________________________

                                                    HOUSE BILL NO. 461

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State of Washington                              50th Legislature                              1987 Regular Session

By Representatives Fisher, Belcher, Sayan and Wang; by request of Department of Labor and Industries

Read first time 1/28/87 and referred to Committee on Commerce & Labor.

AN ACT Relating to the definition of wages for purposes of industrial insurance; and amending RCW 51.08.178.

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

        Sec. 1.  Section 5, chapter 14, Laws of 1980 and RCW 51.08.178 are each amended to read as follows:

          (1) For the purposes of this title, the monthly wages the worker was receiving from all employment at the time of injury shall be the basis upon which compensation is computed unless otherwise provided specifically in the statute concerned.  In cases where the worker's wages are not fixed by the month, they shall be determined by multiplying the daily wage the worker was receiving at the time of the injury:

          (a) By five, if the worker was normally employed one day a week;

          (b) By nine, if the worker was normally employed two days a week;

          (c) By thirteen, if the worker was normally employed three days a week;

          (d) By eighteen, if the worker was normally employed four days a week;

          (e) By twenty-two, if the worker was normally employed five days a week;

          (f) By twenty-six, if the worker was normally employed six days a week;

          (g) By thirty, if the worker was normally employed seven days a week.

          The term "wages" shall include the reasonable value of board, housing, fuel, or other consideration of like nature received from the employer as part of the contract of hire, but shall not include overtime pay((, tips,)) or gratuities received from the employer.  However, tips shall be considered wages only to the extent such tips are reported to the employer for federal income tax purposes.  The daily wage shall be the hourly wage multiplied by the number of hours the worker is normally employed.

          (2) In cases where a wage has not been fixed or cannot be reasonably and fairly determined, the monthly wage shall be computed on the basis of the usual wage paid other employees engaged in like or similar occupations where the wages are fixed.