Amendment to NYC’s Salary Transparency Law Delays Effective Date and More

On May 12, 2022, Mayor Eric Adams signed a bill (Int. 134-A) that amended New York City’s salary transparency law (which we previously wrote about here and here) by, among other things, pushing back the law’s original effective date until November 1, 2022.  

As we shared previously, New York City’s salary transparency law (Local Law No. 32 of 2022) required employers with 4 or more employees to include a good faith estimate of the minimum and maximum salary it expects to pay in any advertisement for a job, promotion, or transfer opportunity in New York City. This law was set to go into effect on May 15, 2022. The amendment not only delays the law’s effective date, but also makes the following important changes and clarifications: 

• Scope – the law does not apply to positions that cannot or will not be performed, at least in part, in New York City.
• Disclosure – the disclosure requirement includes minimum and maximum annual salary or hourly wage, whichever is applicable to the position.
• Remedy – the right to file a lawsuit for an alleged violation of the law is limited to current employees bringing claims against their current employer.
• Penalties – covered employers will not be subject to a civil penalty for a first complaint alleging a violation, provided that the employer shows it fixed the violation within 30 days of receiving notice from the New York City Commission on Human Rights (NYCCHR). Covered employers may have to pay civil penalties of up to $250,000 for an uncured first violation, as well as for any subsequent violations.

Recently, the NYCCHR issued an updated fact sheet to assist covered employers with complying with the law as amended.

Next steps for Employers
Employers can begin preparing now for compliance with the new law as amended, and should consider taking the following steps:

• Evaluating the implications of adding pay information in covered job postings and consider conducting a pay equity audit or review.
• Setting or reviewing annual salary or hourly rate ranges for positions that can or will be performed, even in part, in New York City.
• Developing or reviewing policies and practices relating to the disclosure of salary or wage information in internal and external job postings, and creating new job posting templates, if needed.
• Educating human resources and other professionals (e.g., hiring managers, recruiters, compliance teams) about the new law.

We will continue to monitor developments relating to New York City’s salary transparency law. Please feel free to contact Natasha Lipcan at [email protected] with questions about this new law or its requirements.

Natasha Lipcan (New York team) is an employment law attorney with more than 20 years of experience representing private employers in a broad range of employee-related matters. She handles a wide range of employment issues, including employment law compliance, organizational change, diversity and inclusion, employment-related agreements, arbitrations and litigations, wage and hour, workplace training and policies, and recruiting, hiring, managing and terminating employees.