Public Advocate Letitia James and first lady Chirlane McCray joined a host of demonstrators on the steps of City Hall Tuesday to celebrate a ban against New York city employers asking about salary history. The ban, championed by McCray, went into effect on Thursday.
Officials said they hope the ban will help close the pay gap between women and men.
“The worth of New Yorkers, men and women alike, will no longer be determined by their prior compensation,” said James, standing on the steps of City Hall on Tuesday. “Millions of women won’t have to worry if they’re earning less than their male counterparts, and our workers can now be judged by the fair market value of their skills and not the size of a previous paycheck.”
The ban, sponsored by James and Councilwoman Elizabeth Crowley, was passed by the city council in April, and makes it illegal to ask prospective employees about their salary history during the hiring process. James said the law isn’t “a cure-all” for the gender pay gap — women earn about 80 percent of what men earn each year, according to Pew Research Center data — but said it was “a major step forward.”
The ban will be enforced by the city’s Commission on Human Rights.
“For far too long women and people of color have been saddled by the weight of their salary history, trapping them in the cycle of wage inequality,” said Carmelyn P. Malalis, the agency’s commissioner. “And today in New York City, we’re saying that cycle ends.”
Meg Fosque, a lead organizer with Make the Road New York, said the gender pay gap affects Latino women more than any other group. She hopes this ban will start a conversation about closing that pay gap.
“Employers should pace pay on experience, they should pace pay on the job, not on what you earned on previous jobs,” she said. “We’re hoping that it helps close the gap, we’re hoping that it begins the process.”
