People who applied to a Trane job opening in Washington from January 1, 2023 through July 26, 2025, where the posting left out pay and benefits information, will be paid an estimated $1,173.55 automatically from the Trane Washington job postings class action settlement if the court approves it. There is no claim form; the final approval hearing is set for March 5, 2027.
Current Status
The King County Superior Court preliminarily approved the $486,000 settlement on October 16, 2026, and notices have gone out to class members. There is no claim form: if the court grants final approval at the March 5, 2027 hearing, class members who do not opt out will be paid automatically. January 5, 2027 is the deadline to opt out, object, or update a mailing address or payment choice with the administrator. No final approval order or payment date had been announced as of November 10, 2026.Free settlement alerts
Get notified when new class actions open to claims
Join thousands of readers who get the latest class action settlements you may qualify for — delivered straight to your inbox.
What Changed Recently?
Judge Kent Liu of King County Superior Court preliminarily approved the settlement of Spencer v. Trane U.S. Inc., et al., Case No. 25-2-36800-9 SEA, on October 16, 2026, and the administrator has sent notices to the class members Trane’s records identify.The lawsuit, filed December 8, 2025 against Trane U.S. Inc., Trane Technologies Company LLC, Trane Technologies Life Sciences LLC and Trane Technologies Manufacturing LLC, alleges that their job postings for open Washington positions did not disclose the wage scale or salary range and a general description of benefits and other compensation, as the pay transparency provision of the Washington Equal Pay and Opportunities Act, RCW 49.58.110, has required since January 1, 2023. Trane answered in April 2026 denying all of the allegations, disputes the claims and contends it did not violate any law; the settlement is not an admission of wrongdoing, and the court has not decided who is right. OCA tracks the other cases brought under the same law on its Washington job posting settlements page.
Who Qualifies?
The court’s order defines the class as the plaintiff and all U.S. individuals who, from January 1, 2023 through July 26, 2025, applied in response to job postings with the same Trane organization the plaintiff applied to, where the posting included no wage information, other compensation or benefit information. The notice describes class members as people who applied for at least one job opening in Washington with the Trane defendants during that period.Trane represented that there are 243 class members, and the class was identified from its records. Someone who believes they were wrongly left off the list has 60 days from the notice mailing to dispute it; Trane’s records control unless the person has documents showing they belong.
How Much Can You Get?
Every class member who does not opt out gets an equal share of the class fund. That is the $486,000 total minus attorneys’ fees of $161,999.99 (about one-third), up to $5,000 in costs, a $15,000 service award to the plaintiff, and administration costs capped at $20,000. The court-approved notice estimates each class member’s payment at $1,173.55. The preliminary approval order found the requested fees and service award reasonable, but the notice says the court will set the final amounts and may award less; any administration money left unspent goes back to class members pro rata, and the shares of anyone who opts out stay in the class fund.Payments are mailed as checks to class members with a valid mailing address, or sent through an online payment service such as PayPal or Venmo on request or when no valid address is on file. Checks expire 180 days after they are issued; electronic payments that go unclaimed for 30 days expire but can be re-sent on request during that period. Uncashed money is sent to Washington’s unclaimed property program in the class member’s name, and any other leftover funds go to the Legal Foundation of Washington.
Is Proof Required?
No. There is no claim form and nothing to prove: class members were identified from Trane’s application records and are paid automatically if the settlement is approved. The Login ID and PIN printed on the notice are needed only to update a mailing address or switch to a digital payment on the settlement website; an Address Form mailed with the notice can be returned instead. The settlement website directs anyone who cannot find their Login ID and PIN to request them from the administrator with their full name and mailing address.What Is the Deadline?
There is no claim deadline. January 5, 2027 is the deadline for three things:• Address or payment updates, which the notice asks class members to make before January 5, 2027.
• Requests for exclusion, which must be mailed letters postmarked by January 5, 2027; exclusion by phone or email is not accepted, and group requests are not allowed.
• Objections, which must be filed with the court and mailed to both sides’ attorneys by January 5, 2027.
A notice that was returned as undeliverable and re-mailed carries a later opt-out and objection deadline of 30 days from the re-mailing.
How Do You Take Action?
Class members who want to be paid do not need to do anything except make sure the administrator has a current address. Address and payment updates are made on the official settlement website with the Login ID and PIN from the notice.Class members who do nothing stay in the class, receive a payment if the settlement is approved and are bound by the release, which covers the claims asserted in the lawsuit for January 1, 2023 through July 26, 2025, including related claims under any state, federal or local law. Excluding oneself preserves those claims but forfeits any payment, and only class members who stay in can object. The notice states that Trane will not retaliate against anyone for participating, and that the decision will not affect anyone’s employment with Trane or treatment as an applicant.
What Happens Next?
Judge Liu will decide at the March 5, 2027 hearing, set for 1:30 p.m. at the King County Courthouse in Kent with a Zoom option, whether to grant final approval and what to award in fees, costs and the service award. The preliminary approval order had listed November 20, 2026; the notice and settlement website now give March 5, 2027, and the court can change the date again.If the settlement is approved and no appeal is filed, the agreement makes it final 31 days after the approval order, schedules funding 30 days after that, and has payments go out within 14 days of funding. No payment date had been announced as of November 10, 2026.
Sources and Verification
- Official settlement website — EPOA Settlement TUI
- Notice of Class Action Settlement (PDF)
- Order Granting Unopposed Motion for Preliminary Approval of Class Action Settlement, signed October 16, 2026, Spencer v. Trane U.S. Inc., et al., No. 25-2-36800-9 SEA (King Cnty. Super. Ct.)
- Class Action Settlement and Release Agreement, Spencer v. Trane U.S. Inc., et al.
Questions
Why does the preliminary approval order give a different hearing date?
The order Judge Kent Liu signed on October 16, 2026 set the final approval hearing for November 20, 2026. The court-approved notice and the official settlement website, which went out afterward, list March 5, 2027 at 1:30 p.m. The settlement agreement requires the hearing to be held no sooner than 120 days after preliminary approval, and the website is where the administrator posts any further change.
What happens to a payment if the administrator has an old address?
Payments go out as checks to the address on file, so a class member who has moved may not receive one. The settlement website lets class members update their address or choose PayPal or Venmo with the Login ID and PIN from the notice. Checks expire 180 days after they are issued, and money that is never claimed is sent to Washington’s unclaimed property program in the class member’s name rather than back to Trane.
Can someone who applied to Trane but got no notice be included?
The class list comes from Trane’s application records. Under the settlement agreement, a person who believes they were wrongly left off has 60 days from the notice mailing to dispute it, and Trane’s records control unless the person has documents showing they belong. The settlement administrator makes the final call on those disputes, subject to the court’s review.
What happens if the court does not approve the settlement?
The settlement becomes void, no one is paid, and the case returns to where it stood before the agreement. The preliminary approval order struck the trial date and directs the parties to ask for a new one within 10 days of any order denying final approval.
