Update applicable to:

All employers in Colorado with particular exemption for out of state employers with fewer than 15 remote employees in Colorado

What happened?

On May 10, 2023, the Colorado legislature passed Senate Bill 23-105, which amends Colorado’s Equal Pay for Equal Work Act, to clarify certain existing employer obligations and add new obligations. Governor Jared Polis is expected to sign the Amendment into law, which will take effect on January 1, 2024.

What are the details?

Colorado’s Equal Pay For Equal Work Act (the “Equal Pay Act”) became effective January 1, 2021. Following the law’s enactment, the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment (“CDLE”) enacted Equal Pay Transparency Rules (“EPT Rules”) and provided additional guidance that clarified and broadly interpreted the Equal Pay Act’s requirements on pay transparency.   

The new amendments add the following obligations for covered employers:

• Make reasonable efforts to “announce, post, or otherwise make known” job opportunities internally on the same calendar day as it posts job opportunities externally and, in all events, before the employer selects a candidate for the position.

• When announcing a job opportunity, an employer must disclose:

• The hourly or salary compensation, or range thereof
  • A general description of the benefits or other compensation applicable to the job opportunity
  • The date the application window will close.

If an employer is physically located outside of Colorado and has fewer than fifteen (15) employees in Colorado who all work remotely, then the employer is required to provide notice of only remote job opportunities, an obligation that expires on July 1, 2029.

Under the amendment, once an employer selects a candidate to fill a job opportunity, the employer must:

• Make reasonable efforts to announce to employees with whom the selected candidate is expected to work, the candidate’s:
  • Name
  • Former job title, if selected while already employed by the employer
  • New job title

An employer must also disclose information on how these employees may demonstrate interest in similar job opportunities in the future, including identifying individuals or departments to whom the employees can express interest in similar job opportunities. This announcement must be made within thirty (30) days of that candidate beginning work in the position.

For positions with career progression, an employer must disclose and make available to all eligible employees:

• The requirements for career progression
• Each position’s terms of compensation, benefits, full-time or part-time status, duties, and access to further advancement

The Amendment provides for back pay as damages for any violation of the Amendment, limited to a period of six (6) years.

For more information, please see the links below:

New Amendment: Senate Bill 23-105

Law Firm Article 1, Article 2, Article 3

What do employers need to do? Employers with employees in Colorado should review their job posting and internal promotion notification practices and take steps to modify those practices before the January 1, 2024 effective date. Employers should evaluate which positions they will be able to start excluding from the notice requirement as career progression and develop a plan for notifying the colleagues of promoted and newly hired employees.