Starting in May, New York state employers must disclose to new hires electronic monitoring of employee activities, such as internet searches and videoconferencing, and New York City employers are required to include salary ranges for advertised job, promotion or transfer opportunities, adding to the increasing maze of state and local laws companies must navigate.
The monitoring disclosure law, which takes effect May 7, requires disclosures to employees hired on or after that date if the employer is monitoring phone calls, internet searches, and online calls conducted through platforms such as Zoom. Penalties are up to $500 for the first offense, $1,000 for the second offense, and $3,000 for the third offense.
- Employers may want to make their policies clear in employee handbooks, and to review offer letters or employment agreements, confidentiality agreements, and electronic communications policies.
- The law applies to all non-state employers engaged in electronic monitoring with a place of business in New York regardless of the number of employees.
NYC pay transparency law requires good faith estimate. The salary range may include the lowest and highest salaries the employer believes in “good faith” that it would pay for the job, promotion, or transfer at the time of the advertisement. Covered employers include all employers with at least four employees in New York City, and independent contractors are counted towards that threshold. The law does not apply to temporary positions advertised by staffing agencies.
Notably, the law does not define “advertise” and it does not differentiate between jobs that are posted externally versus internally. The law also does not define a “salary,” nor does it clarify the requirements for non-salaried positions.
No specific penalties are prescribed, but the New York City Commission on Human Rights is authorized to impose civil penalties up to $125,000 and the law allows for a private right of action within three years with compensatory and punitive damages, attorney’s fees, and costs.
Growing trend of state and local pay transparency laws: While Colorado and New York City are the first jurisdictions to mandate salary ranges in job postings, employers must review the laws in ten jurisdictions (and counting) that have a variety of pay transparency requirements. Employers can expect monitoring disclosure laws to pop up in other states too.
