EMPLOYMENT LAW NEWS
Pay Transparency Update: Cleveland’s New Law and New Jersey’s 2025 Launch
By Jana Bjorklund, GovDocs Senior Counsel and Director
Pay transparency laws, such as those passed in Cleveland and New Jersey, serve as a significant step toward promoting fair and equitable pay in the workplace. Learn about the latest updates below.
New: Cleveland, Ohio Pay Transparency Law
Ohio now has a fourth city with a pay transparency law following in the footsteps of Columbus, Cincinnati, and Toledo which have all passed similar legislation. Cleveland adopted Ordinance 104-2025 on April 28, 2025 with the intent to close the gender wage gap through two key components:
- Prohibiting employers from inquiring about an applicant’s salary history
- Requiring employers to include salary ranges when posting jobs
Key Provisions of the Cleveland Ordinance
Here are a few key provisions of the Ordinance of which employers should be aware:
- Covered employer in the ordinance is an entity, including any agent of the entity, which employs fifteen (15) or more persons within the City of Cleveland. “Employer” includes job placement and referral agencies and other employment agencies when such agencies operate on behalf of an entity that otherwise meets the definition of an employer under the Ordinance. The definition includes the city of Cleveland but no other local, state or federal government units.
- Salary means a person’s financial compensation in exchange for labor, including but not limited to wages, commissions, hourly earnings, and other monetary earnings, and also includes benefits.
- Salary history is defined as an applicant’s current or prior salary. It does not include any objective measure of an applicant’s productivity such as revenue, sales, or other production reports.
- Exemptions – the ordinance does not apply to applicants for internal transfer or promotion with their current employer, applicants re-hired by the employer, a voluntary, unprompted disclosure of salary history by an applicant, positions where the salary is established under collective bargaining, or any attempt by an employer to verify non-salary related information and the applicant’s salary history is disclosed although in that case, such disclosure may not be relied upon for determining salary.
Effective Date of Cleveland Ordinance
The Cleveland ordinance is on the Cleveland mayor’s desk for signature today (May 8). If signed it will go into effect on October 28, 2025.
New Jersey Pay Transparency Law Begins June 1, 2025
As a reminder, New Jersey’s pay transparency law, which was passed last year, goes into effect soon on June 1, 2025. Employers in New Jersey will be required to provide the salary or hourly range and a description of benefits and other compensation for positions in both internal and external job postings for new jobs, transfers and promotional opportunities.
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Key Provisions under New Jersey Pay Transparency Law
An employer subject to the law is one with 10 or more employees over 20 calendar weeks who conducts business, employs workers or accepts applications in the state. The law does not address whether the 10 employees must work within the state of New Jersey. As a result, New Jersey employers with 10 or more employees total, regardless of location, should be prepared to comply with the pay transparency requirements.
Employers are also required under the law to make reasonable efforts to announce, post, or make known opportunities for promotion to current employees in their departments that are posted internally or externally.
Conclusion
Pay transparency laws, such as those passed in Cleveland and New Jersey, serve as a significant step toward promoting fair and equitable pay in the workplace. By providing clear salary ranges, these regulations empower employees to make informed career decisions while holding employers accountable for equitable pay practices.
While challenges like implementation and compliance remain, the long-term benefits of fostering trust, reducing wage gaps, and improving workplace culture highlight the critical role pay transparency plays in shaping a more inclusive and equitable future for workers.
Employers in these locations should review their policies and procedures to ensure compliance with these laws.
This Employment Law News blog is intended for market awareness only, it is not to be used for legal advice or counsel.
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