California employers will soon have to post salary ranges in job listings, under a state law intended to address unequal pay for women and minority groups.
“Studies show when there is no pay range, men are more likely to ask for more money than women are,” said San Francisco employment lawyer Jahan Sagafi. “Knowing what the pay range is going into salary negotiations will help applicants, especially women and people of color, to negotiate a fair wage. If we can start the negotiations with equal access to information and the same understanding of what the job pays, we’re likely to see fair outcomes based on merit, not … bias based on feelings, bluster, and negotiation confidence.”
The law also creates a new mandate for employers to disclose to existing employees the pay range for their jobs, if they request it. And it requires businesses to report new salary and wage data to the state’s Civil Rights Department.
