(NewsNation) — New York City job seekers will now be able to see how much a job pays before they apply.
Starting Nov. 1, the city will require companies with who are posting job vacancies to include a salary range. Employers are not required to include information on benefits like health insurance or retirement plans.
The law applies to any company with at least four workers that does business in the city, including companies based in other cities or states that are advertising remote jobs to NYC-based job seekers.
In 2019, Colorado became the first state to pass a pay transparency law. Other states followed, including California, Maryland, Nevada, Rhode Island, Connecticut and Washington. Individual cities have passed pay laws as well, including Cincinnati and Toledo, Ohio.
The goal of the law is to reduce pay disparities for women and people of color by reducing salary negotiation which is less likely to be favorable for those groups.
Studies show salary transparency can reduce gender pay gaps, making applicants less likely to accept lowball offers. Women’s salaries tend to increase when pay is more transparent but men’s salaries may drop.
Some companies get around these laws by refusing to hire people in states or cities that require salaries be disclosed in want ads. In Colorado, daily job postings fell when compared to nearby Utah after the state mandated salary transparency.
It’s too early to know the long-term impacts of these laws and whether or not they will succeed when it comes to eliminating the gender gap in wages.
When surveyed, workers are in support of pay transparency, wanting to know how their salaries compare to their peers.
A survey from career site Indeed found 63% of workers have never asked a coworker about their salary. The same survey found that 75% of job seekers were more likely to apply to a job that included a salary range in the listing.