Legal Updates
New York City Passes Law Requiring Salary Information In Job Advertisements
Earlier this year, New York City enacted a new pay transparency ordinance requiring employers to include salary ranges when publicizing listings for employment opportunities within the city. The new ordinance, which will take effect on November 1, 2022, amends the New York City Human Rights Law, and will be enforced by the New York City Commission on Human Rights (“NYCCHR”).
Summary Of The Ordinance
The new measure makes it an unlawful discriminatory practice under the New York City Human Rights Law for an employer to advertise a “job, promotion or transfer opportunity” within the city “without stating the minimum and maximum annual salary or hourly wage” for the position being advertised. An employer must list the salary range that, at the time of the posting, it believes in “good faith” it will pay for the position.
For the purposes of the ordinance, “salary” includes the base wage or rate of pay, regardless of whether the position is paid hourly or on the basis of an annualized salary. However, “salary” does not include other forms of compensation or benefits, such as health, life, or other types of insurance, paid or unpaid time off such as paid sick leave or vacation days, severance pay, overtime pay, retirement or savings plans, or other forms of compensation such as commissions, tips, bonuses or stock.
Covered Employers
According to the NYCCHR, the new law applies to all employers that have “four or more employees or one or more domestic workers,” with owners/individual employers counting towards the four-employee count. However, the ordinance does not apply to positions that cannot or will not be performed, at least in part, in New York City.
The ordinance does not apply to temporary search firms that merely advertise for applicants to join their pool of available workers. But employment agencies that list specific job openings are also covered under the ordinance and, accordingly, must include salary ranges in such listings.
Enforcement
As mentioned, the NYCCHR is empowered to implement the new ordinance and investigate potential violations. However, the law gives only employees – and not the NYCCHR – the right to assert a cause of action for a violation of the ordinance.
Further, although employers found to have violated the ordinance can be assessed damages and civil penalties, an employer has up to 30 days to cure a first violation, without financial penalty. Employers may also be directed to undertake other types of relief for violations of the ordinance, such as amending job advertisements or providing notices to employees.
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If you have questions about your organization’s responsibilities or potential coverage under this new ordinance, please feel free to reach out to one of our experienced employment lawyers.
