On April 9, 2018, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit ruled in Rizo v. Yovino that an employer cannot use an employee’s prior salary to justify a wage disparity between male and female employees under the federal Equal Pay Act. The Ninth Circuit’s decision broadens the split among federal judicial circuits on whether an employer may consider an employee’s compensation history in making pay decisions. For now, employers in the states that make up the Ninth Circuit—Alaska, Arizona, California, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, and Washington—should refrain from making pay decisions based on an employee’s prior salary.
It appears likely that the U.S. Supreme Court will eventually resolve the split among the circuits on this issue. Until such time, employers should shift their focus to job-related factors that are less likely to be directly linked to wage discrimination when making pay decisions, such as experience, educational background, training, or prior job performance. For more information, please see our Labor & Employment team's legal alert.Disclaimer
While we are pleased to have you contact us by telephone, surface mail, electronic mail, or by facsimile transmission, contacting Kilpatrick Townsend & Stockton LLP or any of its attorneys does not create an attorney-client relationship. The formation of an attorney-client relationship requires consideration of multiple factors, including possible conflicts of interest. An attorney-client relationship is formed only when both you and the Firm have agreed to proceed with a defined engagement.
DO NOT CONVEY TO US ANY INFORMATION YOU REGARD AS CONFIDENTIAL UNTIL A FORMAL CLIENT-ATTORNEY RELATIONSHIP HAS BEEN ESTABLISHED.
If you do convey information, you recognize that we may review and disclose the information, and you agree that even if you regard the information as highly confidential and even if it is transmitted in a good faith effort to retain us, such a review does not preclude us from representing another client directly adverse to you, even in a matter where that information could be used against you.
