Effective October 31, 2017 Employers in New York City Can No Longer Ask About an Applicant’s Salary History

Effective October 31, 2017 employers in New York City are prohibited from asking applicants in an interview or on an application to provide their current or past salaries, benefits, or other compensation.

This new law applies to all employers of any size that are hiring job applicants in New York City.

Benefits and other compensation include items, including without limitation: car allowance, retirement plans, bonuses.

Employers cannot ask applicants about the amount of commissions earned, but can ask objective indicators of performance, like volume, value or frequency of sales.

Employers can ask applicants about their compensation expectations or about other offers the applicant may currently have pending including the value of these offers

The law does not apply to applicants applying for internal transfer or promotion within their current employer.

The law does not apply to those in public sector jobs in which salary is governed by a collective bargaining agreement.

Employers found to be in violation of the new law may be required to pay damages and/or fines and/or may be subjected to mandatory trainings.