Colorado Equal Pay for Equal Work Act

Colorado Equal Pay for Equal Work Act

Colorado Equal Pay for Equal Work Act

The Equal Pay for Equal Work Act (C.R.S. § 8-5-101 et seq.) was signed into law by Colorado Governor Polis on May 22, 2019. Effective January 1, 2021, this act amends Colorado law and provides new wage discrimination and employer provisions that differ from federal law and other state equal pay laws. UCCS, along with each campus and system office of the University of Colorado, is evaluating the requirements of the new law and reviewing existing policies and pay practices for alignment. UCCS executive leadership, human resources, and legal counsel are leading this effort.

There are several components to Colorado’s Equal Pay Act. Some of the provisions are:

  1. Prohibits wage discrimination by requiring that an employer shall not discriminate between employees on the basis of sex, or on the basis of sex in combination with another protected status, by paying an employee of one sex a wage rate less than the rate paid to an employee of a different sex for substantially similar work (based on a composite of skill; effort, which may include consideration of shift work; and responsibility), regardless of job title. A wage rate differential is permissible if at least one of the following factors accounts for the entire wage rate differential:
    1. A seniority system;
    2. A merit system;
    3. A system that measures earnings by quantity or quality of production;
    4. The geographic location where the work is performed;
    5. Education, training, or experience to the extent that they are reasonably related to the work in question; or
    6. Travel, if the travel is a regular and necessary condition of the work performed.
  2. The Act requires the employer to keep records of job descriptions and wage rate history for each employee for the duration of employment plus two years after the end of employment.
  3. The Act requires providing notice of job openings and promotional opportunities, including the hourly or salary rate or range, and a general description of all of the benefits and other compensation offered to the hired applicant.
  4. Prohibits using pay history for prospective employees by requiring that an employer shall not seek the wage rate history, or rely on the wage rate history, of a prospective employee to determine a wage rate.  Discrimination or retaliation against a prospective employee for failing to disclose wage rate history is prohibited.
Questions

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Who does the EPA apply to?
What does the EPA require?
Who is leading the effort on the UCCS Campus?
What is the timeline for implementing changes?
How long do we need to keep job descriptions and salary history records?
Does this mean that job postings can no longer include "Salary commensurate with experience?"
Will we still be able to set a new employee’s salary based on their experience?
What are “similarly situated” job categories? Is that the job code and title or working title?
What is a promotional opportunity that will be posted under this act?