Questions on salary history banned in Philadelphia; Pa. and federal governments may follow suit
Laws banning employers from asking for salary history during job interviews are beginning to grow in popularity.
Philadelphia council passed legislation making the practice illegal on grounds that it perpetuates pay discrimination, Philly.com reported.
Philadelphia’s mayor has said, through a spokesman, that he will sign the bill into law, making it the first such city law in the nation.
“Base the salary offer on the job, what the job is worth and what the applicant brings in experience and ability,” Councilman Bill Greenlee told Philly.com. Greenlee sponsored the ban.
The argument is that women and minorities are given lower salaries at their first jobs, and then forced to carry that inequity throughout their careers. The new ban would force employers to set salaries based on the job at hand, rather than the employee’s current income.
Similar bills has been introduced in the Pennsylvania and New Jersey state legislatures, and have already been enacted in Massachusetts.