The New Jersey General Assembly has passed a bill that would require many employers operating in the state to include pay and benefits information in job postings. If Gov. Phil Murphy signs the bill, New Jersey would become the fourteenth state to enact a pay transparency law.
S.B. 2310 would apply to any employer with 10 or more employees that does business, employs workers or takes job applications within New Jersey. Covered employers would be required to include a pay range and general description of benefits and other compensation in any external or internal job posting.
Temporary help firms and consulting agencies would not be required to include pay ranges or benefits information in postings with the purpose of identifying qualified applicants for potential future job openings. However, these firms would be required to provide this information to applicants at the time of interview or hire for a specific job opening.
In addition to pay transparency, the bill would increase transparency for internal advancement opportunities. Before making a promotion decision, employers would be required to make reasonable efforts to inform current employees in the affected department of the opening. The law defines a promotion as a change in job title and an increase in compensation.
Promotions based on years of experience or job performance would not be subject to the notification requirement, and employers would still be able to make promotion decisions on an emergent basis due to unforeseen events.
A first violation of the law would carry a civil penalty of $300, and each subsequent violation would be subject to a $600 penalty. These penalty amounts are significantly lower than those in an earlier version of the bill, which would have imposed per-violation penalties up to $10,000.
Once the bill is transmitted to Gov. Murphy, he must sign or veto it within 45 days, or it will become law without his signature. The law would take effect on the first day of the seventh month following its enactment.
