CONFERENCE
COMMITTEE REP. NO. -19860-18
Honolulu, Hawaii
, 2018
RE: S.B. No. 2351
S.D. 1
H.D. 1
C.D. 1
Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi
President of the Senate
Twenty-Ninth State Legislature
Regular Session of 2018
State of Hawaii
Honorable Scott K. Saiki
Speaker, House of Representatives
Twenty-Ninth State Legislature
Regular Session of 2018
State of Hawaii
Sirs:
Your Committee on Conference on the disagreeing vote of the Senate to the amendments proposed by the House of Representatives in S.B. No. 2351, S.D. 1, H.D. 1, entitled:
"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO EQUAL PAY,"
having met, and after full and free discussion, has agreed to recommend and does recommend to the respective Houses the final passage of this bill in an amended form.
The purpose of this measure is to prohibit:
(1) Prospective employers from requesting or considering a job applicant's prior wage or salary history in the job application process; and
(2) Enforced wage secrecy and prohibit retaliation or discrimination against employees who disclose, discuss, or inquire about their own or coworkers' wages for the purpose of exercising rights under the law.
Your
Committee on Conference finds that pay disparity persists between men and women
who do similar work. Existing Hawaii law
generally prohibits an employer from paying an employee at wage rates less than
the rates paid to employees of the opposite sex; however, in 2015, the gender
wage gap for women in comparison to men in Hawaii stood at eighty-four cents on
the dollar and less than eighty cents on the dollar for women of color. This wage gap extends across almost all
occupations reporting in Hawaii. Your
Committee on Conference further finds that the ability of employers to consider
a job applicant's previous salary history and pay secrecy are contributing
factors to the gender pay disparity therefore, this measure is a step toward
promoting equality in the workplace and ending pay discrimination against
women, particularly women of color.
Your Committee on Conference has amended this measure by changing the effective date to January 1, 2019.
As affirmed by the record of votes of the managers of your Committee on Conference that is attached to this report, your Committee on Conference is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 2351, S.D. 1, H.D. 1, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Final Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 2351, S.D. 1, H.D. 1, C.D. 1.
Respectfully submitted on behalf of the managers:
ON THE PART OF THE HOUSE |
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ON THE PART OF THE SENATE |
____________________________ AARON LING JOHANSON Co-Chair |
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____________________________ JILL N. TOKUDA Chair |
____________________________ SCOTT Y. NISHIMOTO Co-Chair |
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____________________________ BRIAN T. TANIGUCHI Co-Chair |
____________________________ TY J.K. CULLEN Co-Chair |
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____________________________ GILBERT S.C. KEITH-AGARAN Co-Chair |
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