Responding strategically to calls for greater pay transparency
Pay transparency spotlights employee expectations and employer efforts to establish a fair-pay culture that supports career growth.
Shared perceptions of a fair-pay workplace are an important driver of employee satisfaction, especially as discourse on pay equity and employee value increases. To stay competitive and compliant, employers need to establish transparent pay practices that account for the growing number of related federal and state laws.
Updating old-school thinking about pay is a strategic opportunity for employers, often requiring a new approach to employee communication. Many have already taken it upon themselves to improve pay transparency, because they think it’s the best move for meeting recruitment and retention goals and is simply the right thing to do.
Heeding the call for pay transparency
The Pay Equity Act of 1963 established equal pay for equal work, and since that time, other federal laws have pushed the ideals of equity forward. Joining other states, counties and cities, pay transparency laws are now on the books in California, Colorado, Rhode Island, Washington, and most recently Hawaii and Illinois.1 They’re designed to help employees understand career opportunities and how their pay is determined, and some legislation protects workers from the need to disclose salary history.
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