Finding your balance amid surge of pay transparency laws

The 2023 and 2024 legislative landscape witnessed a surge in states and cities implementing diverse pay transparency requirements. Despite the progress in recent years in reducing the wage gap, gender pay disparities persist, with current studies indicating that women—particularly women of color—earn only 84 cents for every dollar earned by men. Pay transparency laws aim to rectify these disparities by providing salary and other benefit information to applicants during the hiring process. This additional information is intended to equip applicants with the tools to negotiate compensation, which theoretically may reduce the gender wage gap. In response to this trend and the intent to further address the gender wage gap, several states have introduced varying levels of pay transparency regulations.

Legislative trend

Colorado was the first state to pass pay transparency legislation in May 2019, setting a proactive example for others. California, Connecticut, Maryland, Nevada, Rhode Island, Washington, and New York followed. In addition to state regulations, cities and local municipalities with pay transparency laws include Jersey City, New Jersey; New York City, New York; Ithaca, New York; Westchester County, New York; Cincinnati, Ohio; and Toledo, Ohio.