New Guidance Released on Equal Pay Act

Through new guidance in the release on equal pay, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals issued a judgment through a court case that it is not permissible to use the prior history of salary pay at a job as any type of justification of gender disparity in payment at a company. This is per the federal law through the Equal Pay Act

Before the new action within the Equal Pay Act, many employers would take the previous salary of an employee, add a certain percentage to it and then pay that worker at the new rate. In some companies, this amount would remain in one of the lowest levels of the scale salary which others may view as discrimination for the new employee, based on sex or due to certain circumstances. Some businesses claim this is standard operating procedure for how to handle a transferred employee, someone new or when making changes. To remain in adherence to the Equal Pay Act, it is important that different sexes receive similar pay.

Performing the Same Job

Many individuals may talk to other employees and discover they are receiving far less than when performing the same tasks in the same job. Most of those affected are female employees making less than men. However, some companies engage in the reverse process. However, if the worker is performing the same job, receives less pay and does nothing to deserve the lower salary, this could lead to a discrimination suit. Within the Equal Pay Act, the company could violate the Act and cause severe fines and a decision by a judge for the business to pay the lesser paid employee an equal amount based on seniority and position.

Pay Disparity

The lack of equal pay is a hundred’ year-old issue. The disparity remains in effect throughout many states and countries. The problem exists in the idea that a woman or man should remain lower than the other sex based on the ideals of the owner or company management. However, in the age of the Civil Rights Act and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, it is possible to raise a claim against the company for sex discrimination. The person usually discovers the disparity through communication with other employees. Then, he or she would need to understand if he or she faces discrimination for the same job, tasks or years at the company.

The Prior Salary

The complication in the Equal Pay Act for some employers is the fact they use the previous salary the person earned through another company. By adding to it, the employer could explain that he or she wanted to ensure the person earned more but was in a certain level of wage based on his or her standing in the company. However, many employers engage in sex discrimination by participating in these practices. The employee generally does make more than his or her prior salary in another company, but even with a certain percentage added to the amount, he or she will still earn less than others in the same position with the same seniority.