California Continues to Lead the Nation with Passage of the Pay Equity Enforcement Act

(SACRAMENTO) – As the state marks the tenth anniversary of the California Fair Pay Act, Senator Monique Limón builds upon California’s nation-leading pay equity policies by passing the Pay Equity Enforcement Act. SB 642, authored by Senator Monique Limón,  strengthens workers' negotiating power at the beginning of their careers and expands their right to recover lost wages from discriminatory practices in the workplace.  

Specifically, SB 642 makes reforms to the California Equal Pay Act to ensure workers can effectively enforce their rights by harmonizing the statute of limitations with other wage statutes and allowing workers to recover for all lost pay for up to six years. Additionally, this bill updates the definition of “pay scale” to require a good-faith estimate of the salary or hourly wage that an employer reasonably expects to pay, allowing potential employees to have a clearer understanding of what they can negotiate for.
 

“With many families continuing to stretch to make ends meet, the state must reinforce its equal pay laws and strengthen the economic security of California families and communities,” said Senator Monique Limón. “Women and their families lose up to $1.2 million to the wage gap – leaving money on the table that could help to pay for necessities like housing, groceries, and child care. The Pay Equity Enforcement Act will help to close the wage gap by providing workers with more negotiation power at the start of their career, while also strengthening workers’ rights to recover lost wages.”

“The gender wage gap costs California women billions in lost wages each year—money that could go toward rent, groceries, child care, and other essentials that families depend on,” said Jessica Ramey Stender, Policy Director & Deputy Legal Director of Equal Rights Advocates. “At a time when federal wage protections are under attack, SB 642 is a vital step forward to strengthen California’s equal pay laws. Ensuring women and all workers are paid fairly is not only critical for their individual financial stability, but also for the economic security and well-being of families across the state.”

In 2022, the Legislature passed Senator Limón’s landmark salary transparency law, SB 1162, which required companies with 15 or more employees to include a pay scale for all job postings. While many companies began to provide salary ranges that were reflective of a true salary estimate, some employers provided overly broad salary ranges spanning from $90,000 to $900,000. SB 642 addresses this issue by requiring a “good faith” estimate to allow workers more power during salary negotiations. 

“One of the biggest barriers to advancing pay equity is that workers often don’t know that they are being paid unfairly until it is too late to recover all that they have lost,” said Mariko Yoshihara, Policy Director for the California Employment Lawyers Association. “We thank Senator Limón for her incredible leadership on SB 642, which will help workers recover their lost wages by lengthening the statute of limitations to be consistent with our discrimination laws and by extending the wage recovery period.”

On September 9th, SB 642 cleared the Senate floor with a vote of 30-10. It now awaits the Governor’s signature.

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Monique Limón represents the 21st Senate District, which includes Santa Barbara, Ventura, Goleta, Buellton, Carpinteria, Guadalupe, Lompoc, Santa Maria, Solvang, Camarillo, Fillmore, Ojai, Oxnard, Santa Paula, Port Hueneme, Blacklake, Callender, Grover Beach, Los Berros, Nipomo, Oceano, Woodlands. She currently serves as the Chair of the Senate Democratic Caucus, Vice Chair of the Central Coast Caucus, and Chair of the Senate Select Committee on the Nonprofit Sector.