The law, which passed on January 15 after the mayor did not take action to veto, amends the New York City Human Rights Law (NYCHRL) to make it an unlawful discriminatory practice for a New York City employer to post a job, promotion, or transfer opportunity without including the minimum and maximum salary being considered for that job. The employer may determine the salary range based on what “the employer in good faith believes” the maximum and minimum salary will be for the position at the time that they post the advertisement.
Because the law does not define “salary,” employers should post the salary ranges for salaried and exempt positions and the hour rate range for hourly non-exempt positions. The law does not apply to job advertisements for temporary positions at temporary help firms, however, these listings are required to provide wage information pursuant to the New York State Wage Theft Prevention Act.
The New York City Council approved the bill in December, with the hope that it will promote pay equity in New York City, a goal that the Council has acted on in prior years, such as instituting a salary history ban in 2017. The NYC Commission on Human Rights has not yet provided further guidance on this law. It is likely that any guidance they issue will be added to their webpage on the NYCHRL prior to May.
Employers should review the law and take necessary steps to prepare for including the required information in job postings beginning May 15. Employers that fail to comply with the law may be liable under the NYCHRL, which authorizes the NYC Commission on Human Rights to impose civil penalties up to $125,000 for unlawful discriminatory practices or acts and permits individual law suits, by which employees could recover compensatory and punitive damages.
If you have questions regarding this new law or need assistance with how to implement it in your workplace, please contact an author of this article or the Hogan Lovells lawyer with whom you typically work.
Authored by: Michael DeLarco, Zach Siegel, Shannon Finnegan*
*Shannon Finnegan is a Law Clerk in the New York office.
