Are you ready for NYC’s Salary History Ban?  7 Things Employers Should do to Prepare

New York City employers will soon be prohibited from asking job applicants about their salary history. As a measure to address gender-based wage gaps, the New York City Council passed legislation earlier this year which prohibits employers from making inquiries about the salary history of a job applicant or relying on the salary history of an applicant in determining compensation. The law takes effect October 31, 2017.  Details of the law are available here.  

New York City employers need to take immediate steps to comply with the new law.  Here are seven things employers should do to prepare:

1. Review all application materials and remove any requests for an applicant to disclose his or her salary history.   
2. Revise interview scripts to remove all salary history questions.
3. Remove salary history questions from background checks or any other verification inquiries.
4. Train anyone involved in the recruiting process about the new law. Interviewers and human resources personnel must be instructed not to ask any questions about salary history and should be given guidance on what to do if a candidate voluntarily discloses salary history. 
5. Determine how the employer will inquire about and document a candidate’s salary expectations, without asking about or referring to salary history.
6. Implement a process to document any voluntary disclosures of salary information.
7. Work with any external recruiters or other third party services used in the hiring process to ensure their compliance with the law.

States and cities throughout the country have introduced similar legislation banning inquiries regarding salary history or plan to do so in the near future. Even if you are not a New York City employer, a similar law could be coming to your state or city soon. Employers throughout the country must keep watch for further developments.