State and Local Salary History Bans

Relying on salary history to set future salary assumes that prior salaries were fairly established in the first place. Using salary histories, which may have been tainted by bias, means that discriminatory pay follows workers wherever they go, whatever their job, no matter their abilities. Curtailing this practice will go a long way in our fight for pay equity.

As such, beginning in 2016, many states and localities began regulating the use of salary history in the hiring process. While there are differences between the provisions, below is a list of states and localities that regulate the practice in some form.

State Provisions

• Alabama – all employers in the state
• California – all employers in the state
• Colorado – all employers in the state
• Connecticut – all employers in the state
• Delaware – all employers in the state with more than four employees
• Hawaii – all employers in the state
• Illinois – all employers in the state
• Maine – all employers in the state
• Massachusetts – all employers in the state
• Michigan – all state agencies, as established through executive order
• New Jersey – all employers in the state
• New York – all employers in the state
• North Carolina – all state agencies, as established through executive order
• Oregon – all employers in the state
• Puerto Rico – all employers in the territory
• Pennsylvania – all state agencies, as established through executive order
• Vermont – all employers in the state
• Virginia – all state agencies, as established through executive action
• Washington – all employers in the state

Local Provisions

• San Francisco, California – all employers in the city
• Atlanta, Georgia – all city agencies
• Chicago, Illinois – all city agencies
• Louisville, Kentucky – all city agencies
• New Orleans, Louisiana – all city agencies
• Montgomery County, Maryland – all county agencies
• Jackson, Mississippi – all city agencies
• Kansas City, Missouri – all employers in the city with more than six employees
• St. Louis County, Missouri – all employers in the county
• Albany County, New York – all employers in the county
• New York, New York – all employers in the city
• Westchester County, New York – all employers in the county
• Cincinnati, Ohio – all employers in the city with more than 15 employees
• Toledo, Ohio – all employers in the city with more than 15 employees
• Philadelphia, Pennsylvania – all employers in the city
• Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania – all city agencies
• Salt Lake City, Utah – all city agencies