Although golf season in New York is slowly coming to an end, many employers across the state are hitting the range—the pay transparency range, that is. Effective September 17, 2023, the New York State Pay Transparency Law (“PTL”) requires employers to disclose pay ranges and job descriptions for all advertised job postings. The NYS Department of Labor also issued proposed regulations for the PTL and is accepting comments on these proposed regulations until November 12, 2023. Though these regulations are not yet finalized, employers should take note of their new obligations under the PTL.
Who does the PTL apply to?
As we previously reported, the PTL requires employers with at least four employees to disclose the pay range and job description, if such description exists, for any internal or external advertised job positions, promotions, or transfer opportunities. The PTL applies to jobs physically performed in-state, as well as jobs physically performed out of New York but that require reporting to an in-state supervisor, worksite, or office. If the proposed regulations are accepted in their current form, positions requiring infrequent or incidental presence in the state, such as for meetings or conferences, are exempt from the PTL obligations.
Recruiters and employment agencies are also subject to the same obligations, but temporary help firms are excluded from the requirements of the PTL.
What disclosures are required under the PTL?
Nothing in the law or proposed regulations requires employer to advertise job openings or use a specific medium to do so. However, if an employer chooses to create a job posting and make it available for internal or external viewing, then the following requirements apply:
- Employer advertisements must include a pay range with set minimum and maximum salary or hourly rates. If a role has no flexible pay range, then a fixed rate may be used instead.
- The pay range included in a job posting must be what the employer in good faith believes to be accurate at the time of posting. In other words, according to the proposed regulations, the range must be what the employer legitimately believes they are willing to pay at the time of advertisement. The proposed regulations offer several examples of certain actions that do and do not constitute “good faith.”
- Employers must provide a job description of the role in the job posting, if one exists. Notably, the proposed regulations seem to imply a job description may be required for most postings, except in the limited circumstance where the job title “clearly conveys the full extent of the job duties without additional details.”
What should you do?
Covered employers should review any current or planned job postings, even those created by a third party, to ensure the required information is included and avoid any penalties under the new law. Employers should also watch for the finalized regulations to be issued from the NYS Department of Labor once the comment period concludes.
If you need assistance navigating the new PTL to ensure compliance with its requirements, please contact a member of our Labor and Employment group.