Salary transparency means sharing complete knowledge about compensation at all levels in a company. While current salary transparency initiatives fall short, they are an important step in the conversation around fair and equitable wages.
4 Tools for Researching Compensation
- Job sites such as Built In, Indeed, LinkedIn and Glassdoor
- Competitors’ job postings
- Your employer’s job postings to see if your job position is posted for higher compensation
- Asking your manager for earning ranges for your position
States, cities and municipalities are beginning to enact laws to require levels of pay transparency, with individual requirements ranging from offering pay scale or range only when an employee asks, revealing pay scale only when posting a job, and disclosing pay scale or range only for promotions.
Because these regulations require companies to meet the letter of the law, not the intent, companies often provide only the minimum required information. For instance, ranges can be so vast as to be meaningless — $90,000 to $900,000.
Eleven of the 50 states have enacted legislation, with Illinois making 12 as of January 1, 2025. Here’s a list, including states and municipalities within states, that have pay transparency laws on the books.
States With Salary Transparency Legislation
California
Disclose salary range for all job postings for 15 or more employees; disclose position’s salary range to current employees upon request for one or more employees.
Colorado
For all job postings for employers with at least one Colorado employee, employers must disclose the salary range, a description of pay bonuses, commissions or other compensation, and a description of all benefits.
Connecticut
Employers with at least one employee working in Connecticut must provide wage ranges at the applicant’s request or prior to an offer with compensation. In addition, employers must provide the wage range for the employee’s position upon hiring, a change in position or at the employee’s request.
Hawaii
Any employer with 50 or more employees must disclose salary ranges and hourly rates in external job listings. The amounts must reasonably reflect the actual expected compensation.
Illinois
For all employers with 15 or more employees, employers must provide pay ranges and benefits for all job postings, effective Jan. 1, 2025.
Maryland
Any employer engaged in business in the state must provide a wage range to applicants upon request.
Nevada
After a completed interview, all Nevada employers must provide the wage or salary range for the potential position.
For current employees, the employer must provide this information for a promotion or transfer if the employee has applied for the promotion or transfer, completed an interview or has been offered the promotion or transfer. This also applies if an employee has requested the compensation information for a promotion or transfer.
Rhode Island
Any employer in Rhode Island with one or more employees must disclose to applicants the wage range upon request and prior to discussing compensation.
For employees, the employer must disclose the wage range for the employee’s position, at the time of hire and when or if moving to a new position, and if requested by the employee, the wage range during the course of employment.
Washington
Companies with 15 or more employees, with one or more of those employees based in Washington or engaging in business in Washington, must disclose compensation scale or range and a general description of all benefits and other compensation in each posting; and compensation scale or range for an employee’s new position, upon request of an employee offered an internal transfer or a promotion.
Municipalities With Pay Transparency Laws
Jersey City, N.J.
Jersey City employers with five or more employees must provide the salary range and benefit descriptions in all ads for any job, transfer, or promotion opportunity.
New York City
Employers with four or more employees and at least one in New York City must disclose a minimum and maximum compensation in any job posting or ad. Job postings apply to all internal promotions or transfer opportunities.
Ithaca, N.Y.
Employers with four or more employees must disclose the minimum and maximum compensation for all job postings including a promotion or transfer opportunity.
Westchester County, N.Y.
Employers with four or more employees must disclose the minimum and maximum compensation for all job ads, including postings for a promotion or transfer opportunity.
Cincinnati, Ohio and Toledo, Ohio
Employers with 15 or more employees in these cities must provide a salary range upon request after a conditional employment offer is made.
Why Salary Transparency Matters
At this point, the majority of states have no legislation in place. Meeting the letter of the various laws described above is a step in the right direction. It’s a big step forward for an employee to know the pay ranges of internal promotions or transfers or their own job position.
An interesting twist will be in the states that must provide job compensation ranges to current employees, which will pressure employers to make an adjustment if their existing pay is below the range. At present, providing the information is the only requirement. There is no mandate to adjust compensation accordingly.
If the laws fulfill their intended purpose, then at some point they will be unnecessary.
The employees with real power are those searching for a new job outside their current company. These employees have an additional compensation resource to acknowledge the value they bring to the workplace. Their power resides in the fact that another employer has disclosed compensation figures that may be higher than their own employer’s.
Compensation transparency benefits the employment relationship. As in any relationship, open communication is key. Employees will be able to trust that their manager is paying them based on their worth and is not influenced by gender bias. These laws are a tool to address gender pay inequality, the benchmark of which is white males’ compensation. If the laws fulfill their intended purpose, then at some point they will be unnecessary.
