Page 10 THE SAUGUS ADVOCATE – FriDAy, AUGUST 9, 2024 Salary ranges will now be posted for most Mass. job listings, thanks to new law By Janice Jarosz A new law enacted last week will require most employers to provide a salary range, a move that Governor Maura T. Healey says protects wage equality for women and people of color. Most employers in Massachusetts are now required to post a job’s salary range under the legislation signed into law last week (July 31) by Governor Healey, a move advocates praised as a step toward wage equity. The law applies to public and private employers with more than 25 employees. These employers are also now required to provide a salary range for an employee who is offered a promotion or transfer, under the new law. Employees are also able to ask the salary range of current employees or people applying for the role, Healey’s office announced. “I want to give a shout-out to former Lieutenant Governor Evelyn Murphy for her leadership over decades on this, and it’s a privilege to be able A KEY CONTRIBUTOR: Former Lieutenant Governor Evelyn Murphy, co-chair of the Wage Equity Now Coalition, addressed the audience at the bill signing ceremony for the new Wage Equity Law last week. Governor Maura T. Healey cited Murphy’s decades of work on the issue and credited her for helping to pass the law. (Courtesy photo of Janice Jarosz) to sign this important bill for women’s equity,” Healey said. Murphy, who became the first woman in Massachusetts to hold a constitutional office while serving under Governor Michael Dukakis (1987 to 1991), is now co-chair of the Wage Equity Now Coalition. “Gender and racial wage gaps are real,” Murphy said in a statement. “They cause wealth gaps. With this legislation, Massachusetts claims lead position in building economic prosperity through equitable treatment of every worker.” The legislation requires public and private employers with 25 or more employees to disclose pay ranges in job postings, provide the pay range A NEW LAW: Governor Maura T. Healey last week signed into law legislation that increases equity and transparency in pay by requiring employers to disclose salary ranges and protecting an employee’s right to ask for salary ranges. (Courtesy photo of Janice Jarosz) of a position to an employee who is offered a promotion or transfer and, on request, provide the pay range to employees who already hold that position or are applying for it. The Attorney General’s Office will conduct a public awareness campaign on these new rules. The Attorney General’s Office will also be given enforcement authority and the ability to impose fines or civil citations for violations of this law, and employees will receive protections against retaliation for asking for salary ranges when applying for a job or promotion. PATROLLING| FROM PAGE 9 has viewed the video. “He was able to hide his license plate. He was looking to get clicks on social media,” the chief said, describing the incident as intentional. Pending the approval of the bylaw by the state attorney general, the Saugus Police Department is legally limited in what it can do. However, the Police Department does have the power to enforce the state law that requires any person 16 years old and younger to wear a helmet when they ride a bicycle, skateboard, scooter or other manually or electrically propelled vehicle. “If they’re not wearing the bike helmet, we can confiscate the bike and notify the parents to come down and get it,” Chief Ricciardelli said. The legislation also requires public and private employers with 100 or more employees to submit wage data reports to the state, which will then be published through aggregate wage reports by the Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development. (Editor’s Note: Janice Jarosz, a lifelong Saugus resident, former town official, writer and frequent contributor to The Saugus Advocate, attended last week’s bill signing ceremony for the new wage equity law as a guest of former Lieutenant Governor Evelyn Murphy, who is also a first cousin of Jarosz.) “We’ve done that a couple of times. We try to talk to the kid first. But it’s something we do [confiscate the bike], if the kid has an attitude,” he said. It’s possible the state attorney general’s office won’t approve the new town bylaw until after the summer or fall. But Chief Ricciardelli isn’t worried and expects the bylaw to take effect sometime this summer or fall. “It’s very similar to a lot of the bylaws of cities and towns in the surrounding area,” the chief said. The chief said he spoke with several area police chiefs who have similar bylaws in place and they all credited the bylaw to helping to keep their rail trails safe and orderly. “It’s a matter of when, not if the bylaw takes effect,” the chief said.
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