A city-wide ban on most Columbus employers requesting a job applicant's salary history went into effect Friday.
Employers in Columbus with 15 or more employees are barred from asking applicants about how much they were paid at previous jobs. The ban applies to all hires at job sites within city limits and any work-from-home workers employed by a Columbus business. Columbus City Council wants to address pay inequity for women and minorities in the city who have historically made less than white men in the same positions.
Under the law, businesses could face penalties if someone submits a complaint. Any complaint submitted to the city's Community Relations Commission that is found to be valid will result in the business being fined between $1,000 and $5,000.
Columbus City Councilmember Lourdes Barroso de Padilla said she hopes pay equity will increase and companies that violate the ban can learn from their mistake.
"If you go through the process of applying for a job and you get asked a question and you file want to file a complaint, we didn't want it to be purely punitive. We wanted it to be a learning process for companies," Barroso de Padilla said.
Barroso de Padilla was the first sponsor of the legislation and said she introduced it last year after months of talking with community members and businesses.
The Columbus Chamber of Commerce opposed the legislation, but said in a statement Friday they are thankful Barroso de Padilla included them in the conversation.
The chamber's president and CEO Don DePerro said businesses should have the freedom to make decisions on hiring and adopting practices that meet their needs.
"There are sound business reasons for employers to close the wage gap within their employee ranks. Employee morale, turnover, retention rates and performance may all improve when employees have confidence that their employer cares about pay equity. Our Columbus Chamber believes business owners should have the freedom to make sound decisions with regard to hiring and to adopt practices that meet the needs of their respective workplaces," DePerro said.
Barroso de Padilla called the law an industry best practice and said it is a strategy to close the pay gap for women and ensure pay equity for all. She said Columbus was behind the curb compared to other cities and states that have banned employers from asking about pay history.
"This was about us putting a stake in the ground to say if you're coming to Columbus to do business here, you should do the business of Columbus. And so that is ensuring that we are investing in our people and their families. And no time was better than now to really start to put some of these ideas and strategies into policy," Barroso de Padilla said.
Barroso de Padilla said more companion legislation could be coming down the road that addresses pay transparency and may require employers to list what they pay for an open position when posting a job online.
