hrc blog

California's New Ban-the-Box and Salary History Laws

Governor Brown signed AB1008 which now makes it an "unlawful practice" under California's Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) for an employer to seek the disclosure of an applicant's criminal history at any time before a conditional offer of employment is made. Once the employer makes a conditional offer to an applicant, the employer may ask about criminal history or obtain the applicant's authorization to conduct a criminal background check.

Furthermore, Governor Brown also signed AB168 which prohibits employers from seeking salary history information from applicants. Employers are also prohibited from relying on an applicant's salary history when making hiring or compensation decisions. Upon reasonable request, employers must provide the pay scale for a position to an applicant for employment.

Employers should review their employment application and remove any question(s) which may ask an applicant to disclose their criminal history and salary history information. Employers may need to revisit their hiring procedures to ensure managers do not seek or consider information banned by these statues, including the company's overall compliance.