Alabama Clarke-Figures Equal Pay Act
Effective: 09/01/2019

This act does not prohibit employers from inquiring into a candidate’s salary history.  It does; however, prohibit employers from refusing to hire, interview, promote, or employ a candidate based on their decision to not provide pay history.

 

Albany County, NY Human Rights Law
Effective: 12/17/2017

This act does not permit pre-offer inquiries into an applicant’s salary history. However, prospective employers may seek and confirm an applicant’s salary history once an offer of employment with terms of salary are extended to and accepted by the applicant. Unfortunately, the act is silent on whether the prospective employer may consider unprompted voluntary disclosure of salary history information and publicly available salary history information. Prospective employers will be prohibited from seeking salary history from a former employer, unless the prospective employer requests the salary history information post-offer (with terms of salary included) and the prospective employer has obtained the applicants written consent.

 

California Assembly Bill 168
Effective: 01/01/2018

This bill prohibits pre-offer salary history inquiries; however, it is silent on post-offer salary history inquiries. Prospective employers may consider unprompted voluntary disclosure of an applicant’s salary history, as well as salary history that is publicly available. The bill is silent on whether or not the prospective employer may verify an applicant’s salary history with a former employer. The bill specifically states that a prospective employer is prohibited from “seeking” salary history about an applicant but does not define what is considered “seeking” behavior. Without further guidance on what “seeking” entails, employers should consider a conservative approach.

 

City of Cincinnati, OH
Effective Date: 03/12/2020

This act does not permit pre‐offer inquiries into an applicant’s compensation history. Post‐offer inquiries into an applicant’s compensation history may occur if contract negotiations are no longer occurring.  Prospective employers may not seek to confirm unprompted voluntary disclosure of an applicant’s compensation history after making an offer of employment. A prospective employer may not consider publicly available compensation history. Lastly, the prospective employer may verify an applicant’s compensation history with a former employer if the applicant voluntarily discloses the information.

 

Colorado Equal Pay for Equal Work Act
Effective Date: 01/01/2021

This act prohibits employers from asking about a candidate’s pay history.  Employers cannot rely on pay history to determine compensation.  Employers may also not discriminate or retaliate against a prospective employee if they do not disclose their pay history.

Columbus, OH
Effective Date: 03/01/2024

This ordinance prohibits employers from inquiring about an applicant’s salary history, which includes the applicant's current or prior wage, benefits, or other compensation. However, prospective employers may engage in discussion with the applicant about their expectations with respect to salary, benefits, and other compensation. The salary history ban does not apply to a voluntary and unprompted disclosure of salary history information by an applicant.

 

Connecticut
Effective Date: 01/01/2019

This law prohibits pre-offer inquiries into an applicant’s compensation history. Prospective employers may ask, directly or through a third party, about an applicant’s compensation history if the prospective employee volunteers the information. A prospective employer may not verify compensation history with a former employer unless an applicant voluntarily disclosed his or her compensation history. The law is silent on whether a prospective employer may consider publicly available compensation history. In this situation, prospective employers should consider the most conservative approach.

 

Delaware House Bill 1
Effective: 12/14/2017

This bill does not allow pre-offer inquiries into an applicant’s salary history. However, prospective employers may seek and confirm an applicant’s salary history once an offer of employment with terms of salary are extended to and accepted by the applicant. Prospective employers are permitted to consider unprompted voluntary disclosure of an applicant’s salary history. The act further permits a prospective employer and applicant to discuss and negotiate salary expectations, so long as the employer does not affirmatively seek salary history in the course of such discussions and negotiations. The law is silent on whether a prospective employer may consider publicly available salary history. In this situation, prospective employers should consider the most conservative approach.

 

Illinois House Bill 834
Effective: 09/29/2019

This act prohibits employers from seeking salary history including benefits from a candidate or their former employers.  Employers are prohibited from requiring salary history to be provided as a condition of being considered for employment, being interviewed, or being considered for an offer of salary.  Employers may; however, discuss a candidate’s pay expectations.

 

Hawaii
Effective Date: 01/01/2019

This law prohibits pre-offer inquiries into an applicant’s compensation history and does not permit employers to consider publicly available salary history information. However, prospective employers may consider unprompted voluntary disclosure of an applicant’s compensation history. The law is silent on whether a prospective employer may confirm salary history with an applicant’s previous employer. In this situation, prospective employers should consider the most conservative approach

 

Kansas City, MO Paycheck Fairness Act
Effective: 10/31/2019

Employers may not ask for or rely on a candidate’s salary history when deciding to offer employment or in determining a candidate’s salary or benefits during the hiring process.   Employers may ask about the candidate’s salary, benefits, and salary expectations.   Candidates may voluntarily disclose salary history if unprompted.

 

Maine Act Regarding Pay Equity
Effective: 09/17/2019

This act does not permit pre-offer inquiries into an applicant’s salary history.  Prospective employers may seek and confirm an applicant’s salary history once an offer of employment that includes all terms of salary has been negotiated and made to the applicant.  A prospective employer may confirm an applicant’s salary history with a former employer if the applicant voluntarily discloses this information without prompting.  The law is silent on whether a prospective employer may consider publicly available salary history, so in this situation, prospective employers should consider the most conservative approach.  The pre-offer inquiry section of this act does not apply to an employer who inquires about salary history pursuant to any federal or state law that specifically requires the disclosure or verification of salary history for employment purposes.

 

Maryland Equal Pay for Equal Work Law
Effective: 10/01/2020

This act prohibits employers from seeking salary history, but they may confirm salary history voluntarily provided by an applicant after an initial offer of employment, including an offer of compensation, is made. Upon request, employers must provide an applicant the salary range of the position for which the applicant applied

 

Massachusetts Pay Equity Act
Effective: 07/01/2018

This act does not allow pre-offer inquiries into an applicant’s salary history; however, post-offer inquiries are permitted. Prospective employers will be prohibited from seeking salary history from a former employer, unless the applicant provides express written consent and an offer of employment, including proposed salary, has been made. Additionally, a prospective employer may confirm an applicant’s salary history with a former employer if the applicant voluntarily discloses this information without prompting. Lastly, prospective employers may consider publicly available salary history.

 

Minnesota
Effective: 01/01/2024

This law generally prohibits employers from inquiring into, considering, or requiring disclosure from any source the pay history of an applicant for employment for the purposes of determining compensation.

 

Nevada
Effective Date: 10/01/2021

Nevada passed a salary history ban law that prohibits an employer from seeking the salary history of an applicant for employment. An employer must provide an applicant the wage range for a position after the applicant has completed an interview.

 

New Jersey A1094
Effective Date: 01/01/2020

This law prohibits employers from screening candidates based on their pay history. Employers may not require that an applicant's prior wages, salaries or benefits meet minimum or maximum criteria. If an applicant voluntarily, without employer prompting or coercion, discloses pay history, an employer may verify the applicant's pay history and may also consider pay history in determining the applicant's salary, benefits and other compensation. After an offer of employment that includes an explanation of the overall compensation package has been made to the applicant, an employer may request the applicant provide the employer a written authorization to confirm pay history.

 

New York City New York Human Rights Law §8-107(25)
Effective: 10/31/2017

This law does not allow pre-offer inquiries into an applicant’s salary history; however, post-offer inquiries are permitted as long as the offer includes the terms of salary. Prospective employers may consider unprompted voluntary disclosure of an applicant’s salary history. Guidance on this law specifically states that job applications can request information about an applicant’s salary expectations but may not include a request for information about an applicant’s salary history, even if the employer makes clear that a response is voluntary. Similarly, prospective employers are permitted to “engage in discussion with the applicant” about the applicant’s salary expectations. The law does not permit a prospective employer to verify salary history from a former employer unless the applicant disclosed their salary history voluntarily and without prompting. If this information is obtained from a former employer it cannot be relied upon in determining salary.

 

New York Labor Law Section 194
Effective Date: 01/06/2020

Employers are prohibited from seeking pay history.   Employers may only confirm pay history if a candidate or current employee responds to an offer by providing pay history to support a wage or salary higher than that which is offered by the employer.

 

Oregon Equal Pay Act of 2017
Effective: 01/01/2019

This act prohibits pre-offer inquiries into an applicant’s salary history; however, post-offer inquiries are permitted. Consideration of salary history the applicant voluntarily disclosed without prompting may only be considered if a conditional offer has been made. A prospective employer may not verify salary history with a former employer unless the prospective employer has written authorization from the applicant and a conditional of employment with salary has been negotiated and made to applicant. The law is silent on whether a prospective employer may consider publicly available salary history. In this situation, prospective employers should consider the most conservative approach.

 

Philadelphia Wage Equity Ordinance
Effective Date: 02/07/2020

This ordinance does not allow employers to inquire about a prospective employee’s wage history, require disclosure of wage history, or condition employment or consideration for an interview or employment on disclosure of wage history.  Employers may not retaliate against a prospective employee for failing to comply with any wage history inquiry.  Employers may not rely on the wage history of a prospective employee from any current or former employer of the individual in determining the wages for such individual at any stage in the employment process, including the negotiation or drafting of any employment contract unless such applicant knowingly and willingly disclosed his or her wage history.

 

Rhode Island
Effective Date: 01/01/2023

Rhode Island passed a salary history ban law that prohibits employers from seeking the wage history of an applicant. Upon the applicant’s request, an employer must provide an applicant the wage range for the position for which the applicant is applying. The law takes effect January 1, 2023. Read more

 

San Francisco Parity in Pay Ordinance
Effective: 07/01/2018

This ordinance does not allow pre-offer inquiries into an applicant’s salary history. However, prospective employers may consider unprompted voluntary disclosure of an applicant’s salary history, as well as salary history that is publicly available. Prospective employers may not verify salary history from former employers unless the former employer is authorized by the applicant to disclose the applicant’s salary history.

 

Suffolk County, NY
Effective: 06/30/2019

This act does not permit pre- or post‐offer inquiries into an applicant’s salary history. Prospective employers may not seek to confirm unprompted voluntary disclosure of an applicant’s salary history after making an offer of employment. Prospective employer may not consider publicly available salary history. Prospective employers are prohibited from seeking salary history from a former employer.

 

Toledo, OH Pay Equity Act
Effective Date: 06/25/2020

This act prohibits employers from asking candidates for their salary history.  Employers also may not screen candidates based on their salary history or require that their salary history, benefits, or other compensation meet the minimum or maximum criteria.  Employers may discuss pay expectations with a candidate.

 

Vermont
Effective Date: 07/01/2018

This law prohibits pre-offer inquiries into an applicant’s compensation history. A prospective employer may consider compensation history if an applicant voluntarily discloses without prompting and only after a conditional offer has been made. After an offer of employment has been made to an applicant, a prospective employer may verify an applicant’s compensation history with a former employer. The law is silent on whether a prospective employer may consider publicly available compensation history. In this situation, prospective employers should consider the most conservative approach.

 

Washington Engrossed Substitute House Bill 1696
Effective: 07/28/2019

Employers are prohibited from seeking pay history prior to an offer being extended.  Employers may confirm salary information if the candidate voluntarily discloses it. Employers may not seek pay history.  Employers with 15 or more employees, upon request of the applicant and after extending an offer to the applicant, must provide information about the minimum salary for the position for which the applicant is applying.

 

Westchester County, NY 
Effective Date: 07/09/2018

This law prohibits pre-offer inquiries into an applicant’s compensation history. A prospective employer may consider compensation history if an applicant voluntarily discloses without prompting and only after a conditional employment offer has been made. A prospective employer may not verify compensation history with a former employer unless the prospective employer has written authorization from an applicant and a conditional employment offer with compensation has been negotiated and made. The law is silent on whether a prospective employer may consider publicly available compensation history. In this situation, prospective employers should consider the most conservative approach.

Please review the following jurisdictions that have passed ban the box legislation applicable to the private sector to ensure your company has accounted for these restrictions:

• California
• Colorado
• Connecticut
• Hawaii
• Illinois
• Maryland
• Massachusetts
• Minnesota
• New Jersey
• New Mexico
• Oregon
• Rhode Island
• Vermont
• Washington
• District of Columbia
• Chicago, IL
• Baltimore, MD
• Montgomery County, MD
• Prince George’s County,
• MD
• Columbia, MO
• Kansas City, MO
• St. Louis, MO
• Newark, NJ
• Buffalo, NY
• Los Angeles, CA
• San Francisco, CA
• Westchester County, NY
• New York City, NY
• Rochester, NY
• Portland, OR
• Philadelphia, PA
• Austin, TX
• Spokane, WA
• Seattle, WA
• Waterloo, IA
• Maine
• DeSoto, TX
• Suffolk County, NY
• Des Moines, IA
• Gainesville, Florida

These jurisdictions restrict the use of credit information for employment purposes:

• California
• Chicago
• Colorado
• Connecticut
• District of Columbia
• Hawaii
• Illinois
• Maryland
• New York City
• Nevada
• Oregon
• Philadelphia
• Puerto Rico
• Vermont
• Washington