Salary Transparency Laws 2025: How Pay Disclosure Is Reshaping Hiring

Something remarkable has happened in American hiring over the past three years: salary secrecy, once a bedrock assumption of job postings, is rapidly becoming illegal. As of December 2025, over a dozen states and several major cities now require employers to disclose salary ranges in job postings, and the movement is accelerating. For job seekers, this represents a fundamental shift in negotiating power. For employers, it means rethinking compensation strategies that relied on information asymmetry.

This guide breaks down which states require pay transparency, what the laws actually mandate, and how these regulations are reshaping hiring practices across the country.

The Current Landscape: Which States Require Salary Disclosure?

Pay transparency laws have spread rapidly since Colorado became the first state to require salary ranges in job postings in 2021. The movement has gained particular momentum in 2024 and 2025, with several major states joining the trend.

States with Mandatory Salary Range Disclosure (as of December 2025)

State	Effective Date	Key Requirements
Colorado	January 2021	Salary range and benefits in all job postings
California	January 2023	Employers with 15+ employees must include pay scale
Washington	January 2023	Employers with 15+ employees; includes benefits description
New York State	September 2023	Employers with 4+ employees must post compensation range
Hawaii	January 2024	Employers with 50+ employees must disclose hourly rate or salary range
Illinois	January 2025	Employers with 15+ employees must include pay scale and benefits
Minnesota	January 2025	All employers with 30+ employees must disclose starting salary range
Vermont	July 2025	All employers must include compensation or compensation range
Massachusetts	July 2025	Employers with 25+ employees must disclose pay range
New Jersey	June 2025	Employers with 10+ employees must include pay range and benefits

Major Cities with Pay Transparency Laws

Several cities implemented pay transparency requirements before or independent of state laws:

• • New York City: As of November 2022, employers with 4+ employees must include salary ranges. The city's law preceded and influenced the broader New York State requirement.
• • Jersey City, NJ: Required pay transparency since April 2022, covering employers with 5+ employees.
• • Cincinnati, OH: Employers must provide salary ranges upon request, though not required in initial postings.
• • Toledo, OH: Similar requirements to Cincinnati, with ranges provided upon applicant request.

What These Laws Actually Require

Pay transparency laws vary significantly in their scope and requirements. Understanding the details matters for compliance and for knowing what to expect as a job seeker.

Common Requirements Across States

• • Salary Range in Job Postings: Most laws require employers to include a minimum and maximum salary or hourly rate in external job postings. Vague language like "competitive salary" or "DOE" (depending on experience) no longer satisfies legal requirements.
• • Good Faith Ranges: Laws typically require ranges to represent what the employer genuinely expects to pay, not artificially wide brackets designed to circumvent the spirit of the law.
• • Internal Posting Requirements: Many laws also apply to internal job postings and promotions, not just external recruitment.
• • Remote Work Coverage: In states like Colorado, California, and New York, laws often apply to remote positions where the work could be performed in-state, even if the employer is headquartered elsewhere.

Penalties for Non-Compliance

Enforcement mechanisms vary by jurisdiction. Colorado can impose fines of $500 to $10,000 per violation. New York City fines range from $250 for first violations to $250,000 for repeated offenses. California permits civil penalties and employee lawsuits for damages.

How Pay Transparency Is Changing Hiring

The impact of these laws extends beyond legal compliance. Research from multiple sources shows meaningful changes in hiring behavior and outcomes.

Application Rates Increase When Salaries Are Listed

According to LinkedIn data, job postings that include salary information receive significantly more applications than those without. Job seekers increasingly filter searches to show only positions with disclosed compensation. In competitive labor markets, this means employers without salary transparency may miss out on qualified candidates who won't apply to positions with unknown pay.

Glassdoor research indicates that over 70% of job seekers consider salary information "very important" when deciding whether to apply for a position. For younger workers, particularly Gen Z and Millennials, pay transparency is often viewed as a baseline expectation rather than a bonus.

Salary Compression and Equity Concerns

One consequence of mandatory disclosure is that companies must grapple with internal pay equity. When job postings reveal what new hires will earn, existing employees can compare their compensation. Organizations with significant pay disparities, whether due to gender, race, tenure, or negotiation differences, face pressure to address those gaps.

Some companies have responded by conducting comprehensive pay equity audits and adjusting salaries preemptively. Others have found themselves defending pay decisions they can no longer keep private.

Narrower Salary Ranges

Early in the pay transparency movement, some employers posted extremely wide ranges (for example, $80,000 to $200,000) that provided little meaningful information. Regulatory guidance and enforcement actions have pushed companies toward narrower, more realistic ranges. California, for instance, specifically requires ranges to be "good faith" estimates of what the employer expects to pay.

Impact on the Gender Pay Gap

Proponents of pay transparency laws argue that salary secrecy perpetuates pay discrimination. When workers don't know what colleagues earn, they can't identify or challenge discriminatory pay practices. Early research on the effects of these laws suggests they may help narrow pay gaps.

A study of Colorado's law by researchers at the University of Michigan found that job postings in the state showed more compressed salary ranges compared to similar positions in states without transparency requirements. While it's too early for definitive conclusions about long-term effects on the gender pay gap, the structural change in information availability theoretically removes one barrier to pay equity.

What Job Seekers Should Know

Pay transparency laws fundamentally change the dynamics of job searching and salary negotiation. Here's how to use them to your advantage:

Research Market Rates More Effectively

With salary information now public for many positions, you can build a clearer picture of market compensation. Compare posted ranges across similar roles to understand where your target salary falls. This data is particularly valuable when negotiating, as you can reference actual employer ranges rather than relying solely on salary surveys or anecdotal information.

Understand That Ranges Are Starting Points

A posted range of $90,000 to $120,000 doesn't mean you must accept $90,000. Most employers expect negotiation within (and sometimes slightly above) the posted range for candidates with strong qualifications. The range does, however, signal realistic expectations and prevents situations where candidates discover late in the process that compensation doesn't meet their needs.

Watch for Red Flags

Extremely wide salary ranges may indicate an employer that hasn't clearly defined the role or is posting multiple levels under a single job listing. Ranges significantly below market rate for comparable positions might signal compensation issues or unrealistic expectations. Use posted salaries as one data point in evaluating opportunities.

What Employers Should Consider

For employers navigating pay transparency requirements, compliance is just the beginning. Strategic considerations include:

Conduct Pay Equity Audits

Before posting salary ranges, review current employee compensation to identify and address any unexplainable pay disparities. Discovering equity issues after external disclosure creates both legal risk and employee relations challenges.

Develop Clear Compensation Structures

Organizations with well-defined salary bands and job levels will find compliance easier than those with ad hoc pay decisions. Transparency laws essentially require the compensation structure work that best-practice HR has long recommended.

Prepare for Internal Conversations

When job postings reveal compensation, current employees will have questions. Organizations should be prepared to explain pay decisions, address equity concerns, and potentially adjust salaries for existing staff who fall below posted ranges for their roles.

The Future: More States Coming

The pay transparency movement shows no signs of slowing. Bills are pending in additional states including Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Oregon. At the federal level, various proposals would create nationwide requirements, though none have advanced significantly as of December 2025.

For job seekers and employers operating across state lines, the patchwork of requirements creates complexity but also suggests a national standard may eventually emerge. In the meantime, employers increasingly choose to post salary information nationwide rather than maintain different practices by state.

Conclusion

Pay transparency laws represent one of the most significant changes to American hiring practices in decades. For job seekers, they provide information that was historically hidden, enabling better decisions and more informed negotiations. For employers, they require rethinking compensation practices and confronting pay equity issues that salary secrecy once obscured.

The trend toward disclosure is accelerating. Whether driven by legal requirements, competitive pressure, or evolving worker expectations, the days of "salary commensurate with experience" are numbered. Job seekers and employers who adapt to this new reality will be better positioned in the evolving labor market.