frequently asked questions
For decades, women and people of color have borne disproportionate responsibility for achieving equity in MA, and in no place has that been more evident than in the workplace. Even after years of focus on helping them build their qualifications, skills and work experience, substantial gender and racial wage gaps for these workers exist today and contribute to both wealth and daily standard of living gaps.
Signed into law on August 6, 2024, the Frances Perkins Workplace Equity Act (H 4109) calls on employers to disclose salary ranges when hiring for a position, and to employees who ask for them and requires companies and municipalities to submit their federally required EEOC data to the Mass. Secretary of State’s office. This information would then be combined at the State level to provide aggregate reporting of wage gaps within business sectors that can be seen and understood. We can not change what we do not measure.
Massachusetts is losing workers, and building a vibrant, competitive economy calls for creating workplaces where workers know (not feel) they are being paid fairly and have fair opportunities to advance. With this legislation signed into law, MA can create such workplaces and studies around workplace pay transparency prove it.
Now that the bill has been signed, here’s what to expect. This FAQ was prepared by the office of former Rep. Josh Cutler, who was the original sponsor of An Act Relative to Salary Range Transparency, which is now Chapter 141 of the Acts of 2024. The information here is intended to offer helpful guidance, though it should not be considered as any “official” position.
No, this bill only requires employers send copies of the report they file with the EEOC to the MA Secretary of State.
No, this legislation protects employers from liability beyond that which the EEOC may initiate based on their filing.
California is the only state requiring EEO-1 reports to be filed with the state. No information from these reports is public. CA uses EEO-1 files strictly for state litigation purposes. MA legislation is not punitive. Instead, it enables employers to achieve systemic change in hiring, pay, and promotion to be competitive in their sector.
Many more states have legislation pending, but currently CA, CO, CT, MD, NV, NJ, NYC, OH, RI, WA all have variations of salary range disclosure required.
It requires employers to disclose pay ranges in job postings and protects the rights of job applicants and employees to request the pay range for a position.
Any public or private employer with 25 or more employees in Massachusetts.
The range that an employer reasonably expects to pay for a particular position.
The pay range can be expressed as an annual salary (i.e. $50,000 to $70,000) or an hourly rate (i.e. $18-$22 per hour).
Employers are only required to include the pay range. However, nothing limits an employer’s ability to post additional details on compensation or benefits as they deem appropriate.
No, the law requires that an employer post a range that they “reasonably and in good faith” expect to pay for the posted position.
No, just the expected range. The only exception here would be if there was a position with a fixed salary that did not have any available range.
No, the law only requires the employer disclose what they reasonably expect the pay range to be for the position. A variety of factors could impact what an employer and employee ultimately negotiate. The key provision here is that the employer must act in good faith. Intentionally posting a false pay range would not comply with the statute.
Yes, it applies uniformly regardless of the type of position.
The same requirement applies.
Any type of job posting intended to recruit candidates for a specific job. That could include a posting on a commercial recruiting website, a newspaper help wanted section, an employer’s own website, or a social media site, for example. This is not an exclusive list.
An employer that hires another entity to conduct the job search is still required to disclose the pay range, assuming they meet the 25-employee threshold.
Recruitment postings that are not tied to a specific job are not subject to the pay range disclosure requirement.
It goes into effect one year after the effective date of the act. In this case that is October 29, 2025.
The Massachusetts Attorney General’s office will conduct a public awareness campaign starting no later than April 29, 2025.
Yes, there is grace period until October 29, 2026, during which time an employer which receives notice of a violation has two business days to correct it before any penalty is imposed.
The Massachusetts Attorney General’s Office is tasked with enforcement. A first offense is subject to a warning. Subsequent offenses may result in fines. The law also includes anti-retaliation and anti-discrimination provisions.
The law defines an offense as one or more job postings for positions made by the same employer during a 48-hour period.
Massachusetts is the 11th state to adopt a pay range disclosure requirement.
The law also stipulates that large employers who are already subject to federal EEOC reporting requirements also submit a copy of this report to the state. This data will then be published in aggregate format by the Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development.