HB289 would create a new section in Kentucky wage law prohibiting employers, employment agencies, and their agents from asking applicants about salary history, relying on salary history when setting pay or benefits, or retaliating against applicants who do not disclose it. The bill defines salary history broadly to include current or prior wages, benefits, and other compensation, while excluding objective productivity measures such as revenue or sales reports. It also allows an applicant’s voluntarily disclosed salary history to be considered, and permits verification after a conditional offer of employment with compensation has been made.
The bill includes several exceptions. It would not apply where another federal, state, or local law specifically authorizes or requires salary-history disclosure or verification, to internal transfers or promotions, to background checks or other verification efforts that incidentally reveal salary history so long as that information is not used in pay decisions, or to certain public employee positions covered by collective bargaining procedures. Employers would also be required to post notice of the new requirements at workplaces and provide notices to labor unions, including in Spanish and other languages spoken by at least five percent of employees at the site.
Impact
HB289 would amend Kentucky’s wage-and-hour enforcement provisions in KRS Chapter 337 by adding a salary-history ban and by making violations of that new section subject to civil penalties under KRS 337.990. The bill would therefore expand the Education and Labor Cabinet’s enforcement role and create a new compliance obligation for employers and employment agencies statewide, including workplace posting requirements and limits on how compensation is negotiated during hiring.
Sentiment
No committee transcripts or recorded votes were provided, so there is no direct evidence of debate, support, or opposition in the materials supplied. Based on the bill text alone, the measure appears aimed at reducing pay inequities in hiring by preventing reliance on prior compensation, a policy that is generally associated with worker-protection and equal-pay efforts.
Contention
The main points of potential contention are the restrictions on employer hiring practices and the administrative burden of compliance. Employers and employment agencies may object to limits on salary-history inquiries, the requirement to post notices in multiple languages, and the possibility of civil penalties for violations. Supporters would likely emphasize the bill’s anti-discrimination purpose, especially its attempt to prevent prior pay from perpetuating wage disparities, while opponents may argue that salary history can be relevant in negotiations or verification processes. The bill’s exceptions for voluntary disclosure, background checks, internal promotions, and collectively bargained public positions appear designed to address some of those concerns.