Equal Pay Day

April 4, 2017, is “Equal Pay Day,” which is an apt time to remind employers of the risks that lurk beneath unexamined practices, subconscious biases, and general human fallibility. By the numbers: 20% = average wage gap between men and women in the United States. (Institute for Women’s Policy Research) 58% = companies that track salaries in comparable roles by gender. (LeanIn.Org and McKinsey & Company) I’m surprised the number is that high because I have yet to come across a company that conducted a pay audit by gender before coming to me. 1,075 = charges filed with the EEOC under the federal Equal Pay Act in 2016. (EEOC) $8.1 Million = benefits paid out as a result of charges for Equal Pay Act violations with the EEOC in 2016. (EEOC) Why are we still talking about pay gaps in 2017? Fortune.com provides a short outline of why the gender pay gap still exists, citing the “motherhood penalty;” deficits in negotiation; and employer bias. Our company doesn’t engage in pay discrimination. If you have done a pay audit and can … Continue reading
New California Law on Equal Pay

The new California law on equal pay between the sexes (SB 358) goes into effect January 1, 2016, and is considered the most aggressive equal pay law in the nation. The new law will create a much stricter standard for gender pay equity. California employers will want to begin preparing immediately for its impact. The Law Requires Equal Pay for Equal Work The new law will amend California’s Equal Pay Act to prohibit an employer from paying employees of one sex lower than employees of the opposite sex for “substantially similar work, when viewed as a composite of skill, effort, and responsibility, and performed under similar working conditions.” Limited Exceptions Available to Employers If a wage differential exists, employers will escape liability only if they can show that the wage differential is based on: a seniority system; a merit system; a system that measures earnings by quality or quantity of production; or some other bona fide factor other than sex such as education, training, or experience. Should an employer attempt to justify a pay differential under this law as a bona fide … Continue reading