ABA’s 2017 National Conference on Equal Employment Opportunity Law: Pay Audits, Pay Transparency, and the Public Disclosure of Pay Data

Employment partner Erin Connell will be moderating a panel titled “Pay Audits, Pay Transparency, and the Public Disclosure of Pay Data” at the ABA’s 2017 National Conference on Equal Employment Opportunity Law.

The pressure has never been higher for employers to conduct pay analyses and publicly declare pay equity—particularly in light of increased attention on the gender pay gap and activist shareholder proposals demanding disclosure of pay data. The OFCCP has enacted new pay transparency regulations applicable to federal contractors, and the EEOC has proposed amending the EEO-1 report to collect aggregated compensation data. States such as California and New York have enhanced their pay transparency rules and anti-retaliation provisions. Additionally, unions use pay equity arguments in bargaining. Some companies like Salesforce have even publicly announced the results of their internal pay audits and the proactive steps they have taken to ensure pay equity.

Given this emphasis on pay transparency, disclosure, and reporting, smart employers are analyzing pay to assess risk. Yet determining which employees are “similarly situated” or performing “substantially similar work” for purposes of assessing risk and detecting potential pay discrimination is anything but settled. This program will explore the nuances of conducting pay analyses, as well as discuss the impact of the recent push for pay transparency and public disclosure of pay data.