Culhane Meadows’ Philadelphia partner, Jo Bennett recently authored an article about pay transparency laws in New York State and how New York will join eight other states requiring employers to disclose to job applicants how much a position pays to promote pay equality for women and minority workers, which has been published in the New York Law Journal.
Here are a few excerpts from Jo’s article:
Pay equality has been an important topic over the last few years, and the drive to correct the systemic suppression of wages for women and minority workers for decades has led to pay transparency laws in several states. With no federal legislation on pay transparency in sight, employers are having to deal with a patchwork of laws that vary in application and scope, significantly complicating how they post job listings.
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The current uncertainty over the scope of the posting requirement burdens employers with making a decision whether to post salary ranges for a job opening in a plant site outside New York where the plant reports to an office or manager in New York. (New York City’s ordinance is written differently; it applies to positions that can or will be performed, at least in part, in New York City.) The NYDOL, charged with drafting regulations to enforce the statute, may soon provide New York State employers clarity on this issue.
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Passage of pay transparency laws is one of many efforts that states have taken to address concerns about pay equality for women. With action on new pay equity laws stalled at the federal level, states have stepped in the breach to address pay inequities in the workplace. In addition to salary transparency laws, states have passed measures to prohibit employers from asking about an applicant’s salary history, have strengthened state equal pay laws, and, in California and Illinois, are requiring employers to report pay data to state agencies.
A U.S. Department of Labor report on compensation reveals that, on average, women earned 83 cents to every dollar paid to a man. That gap increases for women of color. According to the Labor Department study, Black women were paid 64 cents on the dollar, and Hispanic women were paid 57 cents on the dollar.
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While the state initiatives are requiring employers to enhance procedures, the federal enforcement initiatives require employers to analyze their compensation policies and procedures for bias under federal discrimination laws. As a result, many companies are conducting privileged and confidential pay equity audits directed by legal counsel to weigh their risks and fix problems quickly.
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To read the entire article, click HERE
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