Tuesday, the White House’s Office of Management and Budget (OMB) announced that compensation reporting requirements for employers will not go into effect as planned. The OMB told the U.S. Equality Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) that it has initiated “a review and immediate stay of the effectiveness of the pay data collection aspects” of the commission’s EEO-1 form. In other words, the White House has told companies that they no longer need to report on their pay practices.
However, according to Dawn Lyon, Glassdoor’s Chief Reputation Officer, the strong trend towards pay equality cannot be stopped.
“As employers, we don’t need a reporting mechanism to do the right thing,” she says. “It is incumbent upon the employer to remain committed to equal pay regardless of who is in the White House.” The announcement, she insists, will not roll back The Equal Pay Act of 1963 even though it will affect an Obama-era pledge to increase reporting on compensation.
“Over the past couple of years, there has been a notable change in the attention employers are placing on pay equality,” says Lyon. “Employers are doing the work to look at what’s happening in hiring, promotions, and pay raises to have a handle on equal pay and to prevent unconscious bias from seeping into the process.”
Employees are “demanding pay transparency” as well says Lyon. According to a U.S. Harris Poll conducted by Glassdoor, 95% of employees/job seekers say it is important to be thoughtful and informed about a company’s pay philosophy (e.g., how pay is determined, how pay increases are determined) prior to accepting a job offer. Furthermore, more than two-thirds (67 percent) of U.S. employees say they would not apply for jobs at employers where they believe a gender pay gap exists.
On Glassdoor, the fastest growing job site in the U.S., nearly 3,700 companies have already committed to paying equitably for equal work and experience, regardless of gender, in order to directly nip the persistent plague of pay inequality in the bud.
“Employers have the opportunity to affect change,” says Lyon. “We’re already seeing thousands of employers taking steps to analyze their pay, and ensure that they are paying fairly.”
One increasingly popular way among employers is to perform an internal gender pay audit to understand whether a gap exists. This involves examining payroll data for evidence of a gender pay gap, and making recommendations to senior management about ways to lower gender barriers in recruitment, hiring, pay and promotion before they arise as broader organizational concerns. Glassdoor has created a free guide for employers that will allow them to perform their own analysis, complete with the algorithm needed to conduct the pay audit.
“We all have to continue to do the right thing and do the work to stay committed to equal pay.”
Employees, to better understand whether you are paid fairly get a personalized salary estimate with Know Your Worth, and find salary negotiation tips on our blog.
To any company who wants to show your commitment to helping close the pay gap, we invite you to do so by signing the pledge here, and using #StandForEqualPay on social media. Take it one step further by learning how to analyze the gender pay gap within your own organization with our technical guide for employers and guide for HR practitioners, 5 Ways to Address the Gender Pay Gap.
