January 17, 2024 • News

HCRC FAQS on Pay Transparency and Equal Pay Law

The Hawaii Civil Rights Commission (HCRC) has published a list of Frequently Asked Questions in response to Hawaii’s recently amended law on pay transparency. The FAQs include such information as:

• Who has to post hourly compensation rate or salary range in job listings/advertisements? Employers with 50 or more employees; the law does not specify whether the 50 or more employees must be based in Hawaii or must be full-time.
• Who is now protected under Hawaii’s Equal Pay Act (EPA)? Protected categories include race, sex (including gender identity/expression), sexual orientation, age, religion, color, ancestry, disability, marital status, arrest and court record, reproductive health decision, or domestic or sexual violence victim status.
• What is prohibited under Hawaii’s EPA? An employer is prohibited from paying wages at a rate less than the rate paid to other employees on the basis of a protected category for “substantially similar work,” which refers to jobs that require equal skill, effort and responsibility, and are performed under similar working conditions.
• What types of differences in pay do not violate Hawaii’s EPA? Differences in pay due to seniority system, a merit system, a system that measures earnings by quantity or quality of productions, a bona fide occupational qualification, or other legitimate, non-discriminatory reason that is not based on a protected category listed in HRS 378-2(a)(1).

Download the HCRC FAQs here.