Inclusion of Salary Information in Job Postings Skyrockets in Wake of New State Laws

Job postings that include salary information have drastically increased as several new laws requiring such information have gone into effect. Compliance with the New York City and California laws has driven the increase, but salary posting is significantly up nationwide in general. Meanwhile, the latest Racial and Gender Pay Scorecard released by Arjuna Capital and Proxy Impact showed several high-profile companies receiving failing grades on pay gap disclosures. 

Nearly half of U.S. job postings include salary information: Pay data site Comprehensive.io shows significant increases across the board for job postings including salary information. Roughly 75% of job postings in New York City and 66% of postings in California include salary information – each jurisdiction had laws requiring such information go into effect earlier this year. Notably, however, salary ranges in job postings are also up nationwide to nearly 50% – a drastic increase from under 20% only three years ago. 

The data tracks the growing trend of employers proactively disclosing pay data, regardless of whether they are required to do so by the new panoply of state pay transparency laws. As such laws multiply, and with job sites such as Indeed deciding to post ranges where employers do not, companies are embracing the new reality of increased pay transparency. 

Activist pressure: Arjuna Capital and Proxy Impact continue to pressure companies in their latest Racial and Gender Pay Scorecard, claiming that several high-profile companies “lag behind” on pay transparency. The scorecard is based on five categories: racial pay gap, gender pay gap, UK pay gap, coverage (types of pay and percentage of the workforce covered), and commitment (e.g., agreement to global coverage and to conduct annual reviews). Of the 68 major public companies examined, 25 received an “F” grade for failing to disclose the extensive pay data Arjuna demands, while only 13 received an A grade. Activists will continue to target large companies on pay transparency and equity.  

Outlook: Whether through state and local legal requirements, institutional investor expectations, or public sentiment, the pressure continues to ratchet up on companies to provide more pay transparency.