Sponsored by:
Assemblywoman JOANN DOWNEY
District 11 (Monmouth)
Assemblyman GARY S. SCHAER
District 36 (Bergen and Passaic)
Assemblyman ERIC HOUGHTALING
District 11 (Monmouth)
SYNOPSIS
Prohibits certain employers from seeking or releasing salary history of certain employees.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act concerning salary history and supplementing Title 34 of the Revised Statutes.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. a. No employer or employer’s agent, representative, or designee shall:
(1) seek to obtain, or require a current or prospective employee to provide or consent to the creation of, a report that contains information about the current or prospective employee’s payment history, including, but not limited to, compensation and benefits; or
(2) release the salary history of any current or former employee without written authorization from the current or former employee.
b. This section shall not apply to:
(1) the federal government, any other state, or the State of New Jersey, or the several counties and municipalities thereof, or any other political subdivision of the State, or a school district, or any special district, or any authority, commission, or board, or any branch or agency of the public service; or
(2) salary history released to employer or employee representatives in the context of collective bargaining negotiations.
2. Any employer who violates any provision of this act shall be subject to a civil penalty in an amount not to exceed $2,000 for the first violation and $5,000 for each subsequent violation, collectible by the Commissioner of Labor and Workforce Development in a summary proceeding pursuant to the “Penalty Enforcement Law of 1999,” P.L.1999, c.274 (C.2A:58-10 et seq.).
3. This act shall take effect immediately.
STATEMENT
This bill prohibits employers from seeking or releasing the salary history of certain employees. Specifically, it provides that no employer or employer’s agent, representative, or designee shall seek to obtain, or require a current or prospective employee to provide or consent to the creation of, a report that contains information about the current or prospective employee’s payment history, including, but not limited to, compensation and benefits. The bill also prohibits employers from releasing the salary history of any current or former employee without written authorization from the current or former employee.
The bill does not apply to: the federal government, any other state, or the State of New Jersey, or the several counties and municipalities thereof, or any other political subdivision of the State, or a school district, or any special district, or any authority, commission, or board, or any branch or agency of the public service; or salary history released to employer or employee representatives in the context of collective bargaining negotiations.
The bill provides that any employer who violates any provision of the bill is subject to a civil penalty in an amount not to exceed $2,000 for the first violation and $5,000 for each subsequent violation, collectible by the Commissioner of Labor and Workforce Development in a summary proceeding pursuant to the “Penalty Enforcement Law of 1999,” P.L.1999, c.274 (C.2A:58-10 et seq.).