Biz Group Touts Impact On Wage Disclosure Accord

Boston Chamber’s Rooney Says Changes Will Make Sure Legislation Is “Implementable”

STATE HOUSE, BOSTON, JULY 24, 2024…..When lawmakers approve a compromise salary disclosure bill as expected this week, it will mark a victory for the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce and could offer a new model for government and business collaboration, chamber chief James Rooney said this week.

The House is expected to vote Wednesday to approve legislation that would require Bay State employers with 25 or more employees to provide an estimated salary range in job postings. The Senate could follow suit in its formal sessions planned for Wednesday and Thursday. The bill would also require employers with 100 or more employees to file copies of federally-required equal employment data with the secretary of state’s office, which would forward it to the Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development.

The product of months of conference committee negotiations and the typical committee process, the compromise bill is “an excellent example of the Chamber’s ongoing, detailed advocacy and the meaningful collaboration with the House and Senate,” Rooney said in a statement this week that highlighted his vision for government and business community harmony.

“The future of Massachusetts is directly tied to a resilient 21st century economy that policymakers and the business community build together,” Rooney, a former state transportation official and top aide to Boston Mayor Thomas Menino, said. He added, “Since early 2023, the Chamber worked with legislators to strengthen the language, ensuring that the bill is implementable in workplaces across industries and throughout the Commonwealth. With the Chamber’s advocacy, we are shaping more equitable and inclusive workplaces together.”

The chamber provided specific examples of its “successful advocacy” and changes lawmakers agreed to make to the bill during its session-long journey language as a result.

An earlier bill draft did not define “other compensation” as it was used in the definition of “pay range,” but the chamber warned that it was too ambiguous. The chamber said that phrase was removed “after discussions with the Joint Committee … which adds clarity for all stakeholders.”

The chamber said it requested a “safe harbor” for inadvertent violations or mistakes as the new requirements are implemented, an ask that “resulted in a 2-business day right to cure, after notice, of any defective postings for the first 2 years of implementation of the bill.” The group also pushed for the one-year implementation timeline for the bill “to ensure employers have time to evaluate their salary approaches and update their systems to comply with the new requirements.”

And the chamber also took credit for a provision of the compromise bill (H 4890) that makes clear that an employer will only be assessed one violation if there are issues with multiple job postings made within a 48-hour period. The organization said the language is meant “for employers that post a high number of jobs in the Commonwealth to ensure that if one group of job postings mistakenly omits a salary range, employers are not punished for each individual posting.”

The bill specifies that wage data reports shall not be considered public records, but requires the Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development to publish aggregate wage data reports.