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Unpaid commissions in Washington: earned is earned

Commissions that are earned are wages under RCW 49.48.010; a written plan may set when a commission is earned but cannot retroactively forfeit it.

Employers usually argue the commission was not "earned" yet. The answer is in the plan's own words: if every condition the plan sets had been satisfied before you left, the timing clause moves the payment date, it does not erase the debt.

Statute
RCW 49.48.010; RCW 49.52.070 (double damages)
If fired
When employment ends, whether by discharge or voluntary withdrawal, wages due must be paid at the end of the established pay period (RCW 49.48.010). Washington employers must also pay all wages due on the next regular payday, which for most is the end of that pay period.
If you resigned
Same rule on resignation: wages are due at the end of the established pay period in which you stopped working.
Late-pay penalty
RCW 49.52.070: an employer that wilfully withholds wages is liable for twice the amount withheld, and RCW 49.48.030 adds reasonable attorney's fees to a successful claim. A genuine dispute over the amount defeats the doubling, so wilfulness is where these claims are usually fought.
PTO
Accrued vacation is wages in Washington when the employer's policy or contract creates the right; the policy decides, and L&I treats earned vacation as payable at separation.
Small claims limit
$10,000 for an individual
Last verified
2026-11-03 single source

What to put in the file before you write anything

  1. The commission plan or comp letter, including every amendment, and the exact definition of when a commission is earned.
  2. Deal records showing the sale closed, the customer paid, or whatever condition the plan requires.
  3. A calculation of each commission claimed, with the deal, the rate and the date the condition was met.
  4. Any email where a manager confirmed the amount — the most persuasive document in most commission disputes.

What the letter does that a phone call cannot

A demand letter fixes three things at once: the amount, the date each item was due, and the date the employer was on notice. Every forum that can help you — the Washington State Department of Labor & Industries — Employment Standards, a small claims judge — starts from those three facts. The letter is built from RCW 49.48.010; RCW 49.52.070 (double damages) and your own figures, so the deadline it states is the one that applies to your separation, not a generic thirty days.

If the amount fits inside $10,000, small claims court is usually faster than an agency queue; if it does not, the agency route and a demand first is the cheaper path.

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Questions

Are commissions wages in Washington?

Commissions that are earned are wages under RCW 49.48.010; a written plan may set when a commission is earned but cannot retroactively forfeit it.

My employer says commissions are paid only to current employees. Is that enforceable in Washington?

A clause that forfeits commissions already earned is the clause most often struck down when challenged. The employer can usually set the timing of payment; it is much harder for it to keep money the plan says you earned.

Other situations in Washington

being fired · resigning · a layoff · unused PTO · all Washington rules

Reviewed 2026-11-03 against the sources listed on the Washington page. This is a self-help document tool, not legal advice, and no outcome is guaranteed.