Q. "What do I need to know about California Pay Transparency (SB 1162)?"
Answer:
What is it?
SB 1162 is an amendment to a previous law, establishing pay equity and pay transparency practices. This law requires employers to provide a pay scale to existing employees for the position in which they are currently employed. Employers must also include pay ranges for any job posting. Pay scales may be published in hourly or salary ranges.
Employers must also provide pay data reports for every employee to the Labor Commissioner every May, starting May 23, 2023. Pay data reports must include the median and mean hourly rate for each combination of race, ethnicity, and gender (sex) within each job category.
Who has to comply with the new law?
Employers with 15 or more employees. Currently, there is no suggestion that churches are exempt.
Who will enforce it? What is the fine for non-compliance?
The new law is enforced by the DLSE (Division of Labor Enforcement) under the Labor Commissioner of CA. The first reports are due May 23, 2023. Failure to file a report will result in a civil fine of $100 per employee, and $200 per employee for a subsequent failure.
What do we need to do to be prepared and compliant?
Establish pay ranges for every position in your organization. For exempt these are salary ranges, (i.e., $60,000 - 67,000/year) and for non-exempt positions these are hourly ranges (i.e., $17.50 - $19.00/hour).
Ensure your jobs are currently classified as exempt and non-exempt and meet the classification requirements under the FLSA.
Gather all salary data and employee information for your ministry, including sex, race, ethnicity, and age for each employee.
Include pay ranges in all of your job postings.
Be prepared to give your current employees current pay range information for the jobs they occupy.
Hire HRMS to perform a compensation audit for you to help you get ready!