House Bill No. 6380
Public Act No. 21-30
AN ACT CONCERNING THE DISCLOSURE OF SALARY RANGE
FOR A VACANT POSITION.
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 Section 31-40z of the general statutes is repealed and the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, 2021):
(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; [.] and
(4) "Wage range" means the range of wages an employer anticipates
relying on when setting wages for a position, and may include reference House Bill No. 6380
Public Act No. 21-30 2 of 4
to any applicable pay scale, previously determined range of wages for
the position, actual range of wages for those employees currently
holding comparable positions or the employer's budgeted amount for
the position.
(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 or direct a third party to inquire about a prospective
employee's wage and salary history 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. Nothing in this section shall prohibit
an employer from inquiring about other elements of a prospective
employee's compensation structure, as long as such employer does not
inquire about the value of the elements of such compensation structure;
(6) Discharge, discipline, discriminate against, retaliate against or House Bill No. 6380
Public Act No. 21-30 3 of 4
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]
(7) Discharge, discipline, discriminate against, retaliate against or
otherwise penalize any employee who inquires about the wages of
another employee of such employer; [.]
(8) Fail or refuse to provide an applicant for employment the wage
range for a position for which the applicant is applying, upon the
earliest of (A) the applicant's request, or (B) prior to or at the time the
applicant is made an offer of compensation; or
(9) Fail or refuse to provide an employee the wage range for the
employee's position upon (A) the hiring of the employee, (B) a change
in the employee's position with the employer, or (C) the employee's first
request for a wage range.
(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 or prospective 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.
Sec. 2. Section 31-75 of the general statutes is repealed and the
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2021): House Bill No. 6380
Public Act No. 21-30 4 of 4
(a) No employer shall discriminate in the amount of compensation
paid to any employee on the basis of sex. Any difference in pay based
on sex shall be deemed a discrimination within the meaning of this
section.
(b) If an employee can demonstrate that his or her employer
discriminates on the basis of sex by paying wages to employees at the
employer's business at a rate less than the rate at which the employer
pays wages to employees of the opposite sex at such business for [equal]
comparable work on a job, [the performance of which requires equal]
when viewed as a composite of skill, effort and responsibility [,] and
[which are] performed under similar working conditions, such
employer must demonstrate that such differential in pay is made
pursuant to (1) a seniority system; (2) a merit system; (3) a system which
measures earnings by quantity or quality of production; or (4) a
differential system based upon a bona fide factor other than sex, [such
as] including, but not limited to, education, training, credential, skill,
geographic location or experience. Said bona fide factor defense shall
apply only if the employer demonstrates that such factor (A) is not
based upon or derived from a sex-based differential in compensation,
and (B) is job-related and consistent with business necessity. Such
defense shall not exist where the employee demonstrates that an
alternative employment practice exists that would serve the same
business purpose without producing such differential and that the
employer has refused to adopt such alternative practice.
(c) No employer shall discharge, expel or otherwise discriminate
against any person because such person has opposed any
discriminatory compensation practice or because such person has filed
a complaint or testified or assisted in any proceeding pursuant to section
31-76.