Employees have the right to fair wages, but it can be challenging to know if this is occurring if they aren’t speaking to each other about how much they earn. Because of this, some employees speak freely about what type of pay they’re receiving.
In California, employees have the right to speak about their wages with their coworkers without any interference from their employer. It’s illegal for employers to forbid them from being able to have these discussions. This matter is covered by California Labor Code Section 232, which makes it clear that salaried, hourly and unionized employees are all free to talk about wages.
Why is this an important protection for workers?
Pay transparency can promote employee morale and trust within a company. It also helps to prevent wage disparities. With this in mind, it’s best for companies to remain open about pay. This doesn’t mean that the company makes individual wages available to everyone. Instead, it means that they don’t classify the pay as confidential.
If any employee is forbidden from, retaliated against or discouraged from discussing wages, they may opt to pursue legal action against their employer. They may also act if they learn that there are other issues with the wages, such as disparities between genders.
Working with someone who’s familiar with these matters is critical because they can become complex. It’s critical to take action as quickly as possible once an issue with pay or pay discussions is discovered.