UPDATED: May 8, 2024
State and local governments are increasingly adopting laws and regulations that prohibit employers from requesting salary history information from job applicants.
The laws are aimed at ending the cycle of pay discrimination and some go further than merely banning pay history questions. A few also prohibit an employer from relying on an applicant's pay history to set compensation if discovered or volunteered; others prohibit an employer from taking disciplinary action against employees who discuss pay with coworkers.
Here, we track the states, cities and other jurisdictions that have passed such bans, and offer a brief description of each law's requirements, its effective date and a link to the original law.
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- State-wide Bans: 22
- Local Bans: 23
Key
Salary history ban enacted
Salary history bans prohibited
Alabama
AlabamaState-wide
Effective date: Sept. 1, 2019
Employers affected: All employers
Employers may not refuse to hire, interview, promote or employ a job applicant based on the applicant's decision not to provide pay history.
California
CaliforniaState-wide
Effective date: Jan. 1, 2018
Employers affected: All employers, including state and local government employers and the legislature
California's ban prohibits private and public employers from seeking a candidate's pay history. Even if an employer already has that information or an applicant volunteers it, it still can't be used in determining a new hire's pay. The law also requires employers to give applicants pay scale information if they request it.
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San Francisco
Effective date: July 1, 2018
Employers affected: All employers, including city contractors and subcontractors
A city ordinance in San Francisco prohibits employers from both asking and considering a job applicants' current or prior compensation in setting pay. It also bars them from disclosing a current or former employee’s salary information without their consent.
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Colorado
ColoradoState-wide
Effective date: Jan. 1, 2021
Employers affected: All employers, including the state and any political subdivision, commission, department, institution or school district thereof.
Employers may not ask about an applicant's pay history, nor can they rely on pay history to determine wages. Employers may not discriminate or retaliate against a prospective employee for failing to disclose their pay history.
Connecticut
ConnecticutState-wide
Effective date: Jan. 1, 2019
Employers affected: Any individual, corporation, limited liability company, firm, partnership, voluntary association, joint stock association, the state and any political subdivision thereof and any public corporation within the state
Employers may not ask about an applicant's pay history, unless it was voluntarily disclosed.
Delaware
DelawareState-wide
Effective date: Dec. 14, 2017
Employers affected: All employers, or an employer's agent
Employers are prohibited from screening applicants based on past compensation and from asking about salary history. They may, however, confirm that information after an offer is extended.
District of Columbia
District of ColumbiaDistrict-wide
Effective date: Nov. 17, 2017
Employers affected: Agencies of the D.C. Government
District government agencies are prohibited from asking candidates for their salary history unless it is brought up by a candidate after an offer of employment is extended.
Effective date: June 30, 2024
Employers affected: All employers in the district except the D.C. and federal governments
Employers may not seek pay history.
Georgia
GeorgiaAtlanta
Effective date: Feb. 18, 2019
Employers affected: City agencies
Atlanta will not ask for salary history on its employment applications, in verbal interviews or in employment screenings.
Hawaii
HawaiiState-wide
Effective date: Jan. 1, 2019
Employers affected: All employers, employment agencies andemployees or agents thereof
Employers are prohibited from asking about applicants' salary histories, and they cannot rely on that information unless volunteered by the applicant. The law does not apply to internal applicants.
Illinois
IllinoisState-wide
Effective date: Jan. 15, 2019
Employers affected: State agencies
Illinois' governor said the state will no longer ask prospective employees questions about salary history.
Effective date: Sept. 29, 2019
Employers affected: All employers
Employers may not seek pay history including benefits or other compensation. Employers may, however, discuss applicants' pay expectations.
Chicago
Effective date: April 10, 2018
Employers affected: City departments
City departments may not ask for applicants' salary histories.
Kentucky
KentuckyLouisville
Effective date: May 17, 2018
Employers affected: The Louisville/Jefferson County Metro Government or any department, agency or office thereof unless specifically excluded in the law
City agencies may not ask for applicants' salary histories.
Louisiana
LouisianaNew Orleans
Effective date: Jan. 25, 2017
Employers affected: City departments
City agencies may not ask for applicants' salary histories.
Effective date: Oct. 1, 2019
Employers affected: The city
The city will not seek pay history, nor will it screen applicants based on their current or prior pay, compensation or other benefits. The city will not rely on pay history in the determination of wages nor in determining whether to offer employment to an applicant. Once an offer of employment is made, an applicant may offer pay history to negotiate a higher salary.
Maine
MaineState-wide
Effective date: Sept. 17, 2019
Employers affected: All employers.
An employer may not seek information about a prospective employee's pay history until after a job offer has been negotiated.
Maryland
MarylandState-wide
Effective date: Oct. 1, 2020
Employers affected: All employers
Employers may not seek pay history, but they may confirm wage 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 wage range of the position for which the applicant applied.
Montgomery County
Effective date: Aug. 14, 2019
Employers affected: The Montgomery County government
The county will neither seek nor rely on an applicant's salary history as a factor in determining whether to hire the applicant or when setting pay. The county must not retaliate or refuse to hire an applicant for the applicant's refusal to disclose their salary history. The county may rely on salary history voluntarily disclosed by an applicant to offer the applicant a higher wage than initially offered if this does not result in unequal pay for equal work based on gender.
Massachusetts
MassachusettsState-wide
Effective date: July 1, 2018
Employers affected: All employers, including state and municipal employers.
Employers cannot request salary history information. They can, however, confirm prior history if volunteered by the applicant or if an offer has been extended. If known, previous pay cannot be a defense to a pay discrimination claim.
Michigan
MichiganState-wide
Effective date: June 24, 2018
Employers affected: None
Michigan has prohibited salary history bans in the state. Local governments may not regulate the information that employers must request, require, or exclude on an application for employment or during the interview process.
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Effective date: Jan. 8, 2019
Employers affected: State departments and certain autonomous agencies
Departments may not ask about a job applicant's salary history until a conditional offer of employment is extended. They also may not ask a current or prior employer or search public records databases to ascertain an applicant's current or previous salary. Information already known or inadvertently discovered may not be considered.
Minnesota
MinnesotaState-wide
Effective date: January 1, 2024
Employers affected: All employers
Employers may not seek pay history. The prohibition does not apply if an applicant's pay history is a matter of public record — unless employers seek access to those public records with the intent of obtaining pay history for the purpose of determining wages, salary, earnings, benefits or other compensation for that applicant. Applicants may voluntarily disclose pay history and, if they do, employers may consider voluntarily disclosed pay history to support a wage or salary higher than that initially offered by the employer.
Mississippi
MississippiJackson
Effective date: June 13, 2019
Employers affected: The city
Applications for employment with the city shall not inquire about salary history.
Missouri
MissouriKansas City
Effective date: July 26, 2018
Employers affected: The city
The city may not ask applicants for their pay history until they have been hired at an agreed-upon salary.
Effective date: Oct. 31, 2019
Employers affected: All employers employing six or more employees
Employers may not ask for nor rely on job applicants' salary history when deciding to offer employment, or in determining salary, benefits or other compensation during the hiring process. Employers may ask about the applicant's expectations around salary, benefits and compensation. The law's prohibitions don't apply to voluntary and unprompted disclosures of salary history information by an applicant.
St. Louis
Effective date: March 11, 2020
Employers affected: The city
Offices, departments and other divisions of the city may not inquire about an applicant's salary history, nor can they refuse to hire or otherwise retaliate against applicants for refusing to disclose salary history. The law's prohibitions do not apply to applicants for internal transfer, promotion or certain previously employed applicants.
Nevada
NevadaState-wide
Effective date: October 1, 2021
Employers affected: All employers
Employers may not seek pay history, nor may they refuse to hire, interview, promote or employ applicants who do not provide pay history. Employers must provide a wage or salary range to applicants who have completed interviews for positions, and they must provide the wage or salary range or rate in certain cases of a promotion or transfer. Employers may ask applicants about their pay expectations.
New Jersey
New JerseyState-wide
Effective date: Feb. 1, 2018
Employers affected: State entities
New Jersey agencies and offices are prohibited from asking job applicants for their compensation history, or investigating the prior salaries of applicants.
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Effective date: Jan. 1, 2020
Employers affected: All employers
Employers may not screen applicants 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
New YorkState-wide
Effective date: Jan. 9, 2017
Employers affected: All agencies and departments over which the governor has executive authority, and all public benefit corporations, public authorities, boards and commission for which the governor appoints the chair, the chief executive or the majority of board members, except for the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey
State agencies and departments may not request salary history from applicants until after an offer of employment is extended. If an applicant's prior compensation is already known, that information may not be relied upon in determining such applicant's salary, unless required by law or collective bargaining agreement.
Effective date: Jan. 6, 2020
Employers affected: All employers
Employers may not seek pay history. An employer may only confirm pay history if, at the time an offer of employment is made, applicants or current employees respond to the offer by providing pay history to support a wage or salary higher than that offered by the employer.
New York City
Effective date: Oct. 31, 2017
Employers affected: All employers, employment agencies or employees or agents thereof
Employers in New York City are prohibited from requesting information about job applicants' previous pay or benefits. If an employer already has that information, it is prohibited from using that information to set pay.
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Albany County
Effective date: Dec. 17, 2017
Employers affected: All employers and employment agencies
Employers are barred from requesting information about past compensation and benefits until after a job offer is made.
Suffolk County
Effective date: June 30, 2019
Employers affected: Employers and employment agencies
Employers may not ask, whether on an application or otherwise, about a job applicant's wage or salary history, including compensation and benefits. Employers also may not conduct searches of publicly available records. Finally, employers may not rely on known salary history information in setting pay.
Westchester County
Effective date: July 9, 2018
Employers affected: Employers, labor organizations, employment agencies or licensing agencies, or an employee or agent thereof
Employers may not request information about previous wages. Only under limited circ*mstances may they confirm prior pay and rely on that information in setting pay.
North Carolina
North CarolinaState-wide
Effective date: April 2, 2019
Employers affected: State agencies
State agencies may not request pay history information from applicants and may not rely upon previously obtained prior salary information in setting pay.
Ohio
OhioCincinnati
Effective date: March 2020 (estimated)
Employers affected: Employers with 15 or more employees located within the city, including job placement and referral agencies. State and local governments are excluded, with the exception of the City of Cincinnati.
Employers may not ask applicants about their salary history and may not rely on known salary histories. Employers also must, upon reasonable request, provide a pay scale for a position for which an applicant has been provided a conditional offer of employment.
Columbus
Effective date: March 1, 2024
Employers affected: Employers with 15 or more employees located within the city, including job placement and referral agencies. State, local and federal governments are excluded, with the exception of the City of Columbus.
Employers may not ask applicants about their salary history. Employers may not rely solely on salary history in setting pay, benefits or other compensation except under specific circ*mstances, such as when an applicant is applying for internal transfer or promotion; an applicant discloses salary history voluntarily and unprompted; and in situations pursuant to procedures established by a collective bargaining agreement.
Toledo
Effective date: June 25, 2020
Employers affected: All employers located within the city that employ 15 or more employees, including referral and employment agencies, as well as the city.
Employers may not ask for nor screen job applicants based on their pay history. They may not require that an applicant's pay history, benefits or other compensation satisfy minimum or maximum criteria. Employers may, however, discuss applicants' pay expectations.
Oregon
OregonState-wide
Effective date: Oct. 6, 2017
Employers affected: Any person employing one or more employees, including the state or any political subdivision thereof or any county, city, district, authority, public corporation or entity and any of their instrumentalities organized and existing under law or charter
Employers may not ask about an applicants' pay history until after an offer of employment is extended. Employers also are prohibited from using prior compensation to set pay, except for current employees moving to a new position with the same employer.
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Pennsylvania
PennsylvaniaState-wide
Effective date: Sept. 4, 2018 (estimated)
Employers affected: State agencies
State agencies may not ask about a job applicant's current compensation or compensation history at any stage during the hiring process. All job postings must clearly disclose a position's pay scale and pay range.
Lehigh County
Effective date: June 1, 2024
Employers affected: All employers
Employers may not ask job applicants about pay history.
The ordinance is effective June 1, 2024, for all municipalities in the county except for the cities of Allentown and Bethlehem, where it will become effective 15 months after the date of enactment provided that neither city government takes action to be excluded from the ordinance.
Philadelphia
Effective date: Sept. 1, 2020
Employers affected: Any person who does business in the city through employees or who employs one or more employees exclusive of parents, spouse or children, including any public agency or authority; any agency, authority or instrumentality of the state; and the city, its department, boards and commissions
On Feb. 6, 2020, the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that Philadelphia may enforce its pay history ban, vacating a lower court's injunction. The City of Philadelphia announced Aug. 6 that its Commission on Human Relations (PCHR) will begin enforcing the salary history ban on Sept. 1, 2020.
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Pittsburgh
Effective date: Jan. 30, 2017
Employers affected: The city or any division, department, agency or office thereof, unless specifically excluded in the law
The city's agencies and offices may not ask about an applicant's prior pay and, if they discover it, are prohibited from relying on that information unless the applicant has volunteered it.
Puerto Rico
Puerto RicoCommonwealth-wide
Effective date: March 8, 2017
Employers affected: All employers
Employers may not request applicants' pay history, but the law makes some exceptions for applicants' voluntary salary disclosures and pay corroboration that take place after a job offer has been made, according to a translation from Littler Mendelson.
Rhode Island
Rhode IslandState-wide
Effective date: Jan. 1, 2023
Employers affected: All employers
Employers may not seek pay history, nor can they rely on pay history when considering an applicant for employment or determining pay. They may, however, confirm and rely on pay history after an employment offer is made to support a higher wage than initially offered. Employers also must provide a wage range for a given position.
South Carolina
South CarolinaColumbia
Effective date: Aug. 6, 2019
Employers affected: The city
The city will not seek pay history, nor will it rely on pay history in the determination of wages unless an applicant knowingly and willingly discloses pay history. The city will encourage vendors who do business with the city to adopt similar standards, and it may factor in vendors' pay history standards in the process of determining whether to award city contracts.
Richland County
Effective date: May 23, 2019
Employers affected: The county
Richland County will remove the salary history question from employment applications, verbal interviews and employment screenings.
Utah
UtahSalt Lake City
Effective date: March 1, 2018
Employers affected: Salt Lake City Corporation
Individuals participating in a city hiring process are prohibited from asking an applicant about their salary history. If an applicant voluntarily discloses salary information, the city cannot rely on such information.
Vermont
VermontState-wide
Effective date: July 1, 2018
Employers affected: All employers
Employers may not request applicants' pay history. If that information is volunteered, employers may only confirm it after a job offer has been made.
Virginia
VirginiaState-wide
Effective date: July 1, 2019
Employers affected: State agencies
Beginning July 1, the Virginia Department of Human Resource Management will introduce an updated application for state jobs that eliminates the salary history field, according to a June 20 announcement by Gov. Ralph Northam.
Washington
WashingtonState-wide
Effective date: July 28, 2019
Employers affected: All employers
Employers may not seek pay history. They may, however, confirm that information if the applicant voluntarily discloses it or if an offer has been extended.
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.
Wisconsin
WisconsinState-wide
Effective date: April 18, 2018
Employers affected: None
Local governments may not prohibit employers from soliciting the salary history of prospective employees.
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