Requesting applicants’ salary history has been standard practice for many employers that use this information to eliminate applicants from the hiring pool: “This person is too expensive.” “At that low rate of pay, this person must be unqualified.”
Employers have also used prior pay information to set compensation for new hires—a practice that may perpetuate the pay disparity between men and women.
To address gender pay disparity, a number of states and localities have recently enacted prohibitions on inquiring into such information, though these prohibitions vary in terms, scope and applicability.
