NYS Employers: Remove Salary History Questions From Your Employment Applications NOW in Business and at Work

It’s a lot of work to keep up with all of the employer compliance requirements in NYS. After reviewing an employer’s job application asking candidates for their job history last week, it presented a good reminder for all NYS employers to remove that question from their employment applications sooner rather than later.

NYS Governor Andrew Cuomo this past July signed into law a ban that prohibits all employers who do business in New York state in the public and private sectors from asking job candidates about their salary history and compensation.

While the statewide salary-history-ban law takes effect January 1, 2020, there are a number of counties and other localities, including but not limited to Albany County, that currently ban salary history questions.

Like other employer compliance deadlines in NYS (such as all employers completing their first annual Sexual and Other Harassment Prevention Training by this October 9, 2019), it’s best not to wait until the last minute. Take the salary history question off your employment applications now. Replace it by asking what the applicant’s salary requirement is; or better yet, start publishing the salary ranges for your open jobs.

And while you’re at it, review your employment applications for other non-compliant issues, e.g. asking applicants for Social Security numbers.

It’ll help keep you compliant; and you may fill your open jobs faster, in business and at work.