NYC Prohibition on Salary History Inquiries Takes Effect October 31

Earlier this year, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio signed Intro. 1253 into law, which prohibits all employers from inquiring about a prospective employee’s salary history. Beginning October 31, 2017, this NYC prohibition on salary history inquiries prevents employers from doing the following:

1. Asking applicants—whether on an application or at any time during the interview process—how much they earned in the past.
2. Asking the applicant’s previous employers about their salary history.
3. Searching public records in an attempt to uncover this information.

If an employer is aware of or becomes aware of an applicant’s salary history, that information should not be used to determine the rate of pay offered unless the information was volunteered by the applicant without any kind of prompting.

The New York City Commission on Human Rights will enforce the law. Violators may be subject to a penalty of up to $250,000 for willful and malicious violations of the law, in addition to any compensatory damages awarded to the employee.

NYC employers should review their employment applications to ensure they are in compliance when the law takes effect on October 31. For more information on how GTM clients stay updated on labor laws, contact us at (518) 373-4111.