General Assembly Governor's Bill No. 15
February Session, 2018 LCO No. 297
*00297__________*
Referred to Committee on LABOR AND PUBLIC EMPLOYEES
Introduced by:
SEN. LOONEY, 11th Dist. SEN. DUFF, 25th Dist. REP. ARESIMOWICZ, 30th Dist. REP. RITTER M., 1st Dist.
General Assembly
Governor's Bill No. 15
February Session, 2018
LCO No. 297
*00297__________*
Referred to Committee on LABOR AND PUBLIC EMPLOYEES
Introduced by:
SEN. LOONEY, 11th Dist.
SEN. DUFF, 25th Dist.
REP. ARESIMOWICZ, 30th Dist.
REP. RITTER M., 1st Dist.
AN ACT CONCERNING FAIR AND EQUAL PAY FOR EQUAL WORK.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Assembly convened:
Section 1. Section 31-40z of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2018):
(a) As used in this section:
(1) "Employer" means any individual, corporation, limited liability company, firm, partnership, voluntary association, joint stock association, the state and any political subdivision thereof and any public corporation within the state using the services of one or more employees for pay;
(2) "Employee" means any individual employed or permitted to work by an employer; and
(3) "Wages" means compensation for labor or services rendered by an employee, whether the amount is determined on a time, task, piece, commission or other basis of calculation.
(b) No employer shall:
(1) Prohibit an employee from disclosing or discussing the amount of his or her wages or the wages of another employee of such employer that have been disclosed voluntarily by such other employee;
(2) Prohibit an employee from inquiring about the wages of another employee of such employer;
(3) Require an employee to sign a waiver or other document that denies the employee his or her right to disclose or discuss the amount of his or her wages or the wages of another employee of such employer that have been disclosed voluntarily by such other employee;
(4) Require an employee to sign a waiver or other document that denies the employee his or her right to inquire about the wages of another employee of such employer;
(5) Inquire about a prospective employee's wage and salary history before an offer of employment that includes wages has been accepted by the prospective employee unless a prospective employee has voluntarily disclosed such information, except that this subdivision shall not apply to any actions taken by an employer, employment agency or employee or agent thereof pursuant to any federal or state law that specifically authorizes the disclosure or verification of salary history for employment purposes. An employee's prior wage and salary history shall not be considered a bona fide factor defense to such claim under this subdivision;
[(5)] (6) Discharge, discipline, discriminate against, retaliate against or otherwise penalize any employee who discloses or discusses the amount of his or her wages or the wages of another employee of such employer that have been disclosed voluntarily by such other employee; or
[(6)] (7) Discharge, discipline, discriminate against, retaliate against or otherwise penalize any employee who inquires about the wages of another employee of such employer.
(c) Nothing in this section shall be construed to require any employer or employee to disclose the amount of wages paid to any employee.
(d) An action to redress a violation of subsection (b) of this section may be maintained in any court of competent jurisdiction by any one or more employees. An employer who violates subsection (b) of this section may be found liable for compensatory damages, attorney's fees and costs, punitive damages and such legal and equitable relief as the court deems just and proper.
(e) No action shall be brought for any violation of subsection (b) of this section except within two years after such violation.
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following sections:
Section 1 October 1, 2018 31-40z
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following sections:
Section 1
October 1, 2018
31-40z
Statement of Purpose:
To implement the Governor's budget recommendations.
[Proposed deletions are enclosed in brackets. Proposed additions are indicated by underline, except that when the entire text of a bill or resolution or a section of a bill or resolution is new, it is not underlined.]