Morgan v. Kingen

¶1 A critical test in an action for unpaid wages under RCW 49.52.070 is whether the employer’s failure to pay wages is “willful.”1 Whether the failure to pay wages is “willful” turns on whether the employer’s refusal to pay is volitional: whether “ ‘the [employer] knows what he is doing, intends to do what he is doing, and is a free agent.’ ”2 A failure to pay wages for financial reasons is not recognized as a basis to show a lack of willfulness under RCW 49.52.070.3

¶2 Here, Gerald Kingen and Scott Switzer were both officers of Funsters Grand Casino, Inc., a company they operated before and…