WHEREAS, New York State is a national leader in protecting
the civil rights and liberties of all of its citizens;
WHEREAS, it is the policy of this State to promote
fairness, combat discrimination, and ensure equal treatment for all
people;
WHEREAS, every New Yorker should have the opportunity to be
fairly and equally compensated based on the nature and responsibility of the
work that they do;
WHEREAS, State and federal law prohibit gender-based pay
discrimination and require equal pay for equal work;
WHEREAS, in 2015, New York State enacted a comprehensive
set of laws to support, protect, and strengthen the rights of women in the
workplace, including prohibiting employers from paying women less than men for
performing the same work and allowing employees to discuss their wages with
each other without threat of termination or suspension;
WHEREAS, women and racial and ethnic minority workers have
historically encountered lower wages and salaries causing a wage gap that
pervades all industries;
WHEREAS, despite recent advances, federal data shows that
women in this state continue to earn an average of 87 cents on the dollar, or
13 cents less, compared to what men earn for performing the same work;
WHEREAS, the State of New York will not perpetuate
inequities that may be reflected in the prior salary levels of incoming
employees and will further true pay equity by ensuring that the State
eliminates all vestiges of historical discrimination in its wage-setting
system; and
WHEREAS, members of the State workforce must be fairly and
appropriately compensated based upon the work they perform, rather than based
upon their gender, race or ethnicity, their prior employer, or prior
earnings.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, ANDREW M. CUOMO, Governor of the State
of New York, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and
laws of the State of New York, do hereby order as follows:
A. Definitions
1. "State entity" shall mean (i) all agencies
and departments over which the Governor has executive authority, and (ii) all
public benefit corporations, public authorities, boards, and commissions, for
which the Governor appoints the Chair, the Chief Executive, or the majority of
Board Members, except for the Port Authority of New York and New
Jersey.
2. "Compensation" shall
mean salary, wages, benefits, and any other forms of payment.
B. In order to promote
consideration of applicants based on their unique aptitude and qualifications,
no State entity is permitted to ask, or mandate, in any form, that an applicant
for employment provide his or her current compensation, or any prior
compensation history, until such time as the applicant is extended a
conditional offer of employment with compensation.
C. Once a conditional offer of employment has
been extended, a State entity may request and verify compensation
information.
D. If a State entity
is already in possession of an applicant's prior compensation as of the
effective date of this Executive Order, such information shall not be relied
upon in determining such applicant's salary, unless required by law or
collective bargaining agreement.
E.
The Governor's Office of Employee Relations will monitor and oversee this
Executive Order and train relevant human resources staff from State entities on
the requirements of this Executive Order.
F. Nothing contained herein shall prevent an
applicant from volunteering compensation information, but no applicant is under
any obligation to provide such information until the requirements of this
Executive Order are met.
G. An
applicant's refusal to provide compensation information shall not be considered
in making an employment determination. Applicants that have been improperly
asked for compensation information in violation of this Executive Order may
report such violations to the Governor's Office of Employee
Relations.
H. Nothing contained
herein shall impair any rights under any collective bargaining
agreement.
