On July 31, 2024, Massachusetts enacted a new law entitled An Act Relative to Salary Range Transparency, which requires employers disclose a pay range in job postings and advertisements.  The law is slated to become effective July 31, 2025, and applies to Massachusetts employers with 25 or more employees.  Massachusetts is the latest among several states, such as California, New York, and Connecticut, to enact payroll transparency requirements for employers.

Under the new law, employers must include the “annual salary or hourly wage range that an employer reasonably and in good faith expects to pay for the position” in the posting or advertisement.   The pay range must be shared not only in the job posting but must also be provided to an employee or applicant upon request in relation to a current or new position, a promotion, a transfer, or a job offer.

The law contains an anti-retaliation provision, prohibiting covered employers from discharging, retaliating, or discriminating against any employee or applicant who exercises their rights under the Act.  The law, however, does not contain a private right of action and the Massachusetts Attorney General’s Office is tasked with enforcing its provisions. Violators of the law may be subject to fines.

In addition, the law requires Massachusetts employers with over 100 employees to file an annual wage data report with the Secretary of the Commonwealth, including race, ethnicity, sex, and job category.  This reporting requirement takes effect February 1, 2025. 

Employers should consult with counsel to ready for compliance, including preparing required salary range information for future job postings and training human resources personnel on the law’s requirements.  Likewise, Massachusetts employers with at least 100 employees should work with counsel on the preparation and filing of the required wage data report.