STAND. COM. REP. NO. 1461

Honolulu, Hawaii

, 2023

RE: S.B. No. 1057

S.D. 2

H.D. 1

Honorable Scott K. Saiki

Speaker, House of Representatives

Thirty-Second State Legislature

Regular Session of 2023

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committees on Economic Development and Labor & Government Operations, to which was referred S.B. No. 1057, S.D. 2, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO EMPLOYMENT EARNINGS,"

beg leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to:

(1) Require certain job listings to disclose the hourly rate or salary range that reasonably reflects the actual expected compensation; and

(2) Prohibit an employer from discriminating between employees because of any protected category established under state law by paying wages to employees in an establishment at a rate less than the rate at which the employer pays wages to other employees in the establishment for substantially similar work.

Your Committees received testimony in support of this measure from the Hawai‘i Civil Rights Commission, Hawaii Appleseed Center for Law & Economic Justice, American Association of University Women of Hawaii, Hawaii State Democratic Women's Caucus, and numerous individuals. Your Committees received testimony in opposition to this measure from the Retail Merchants of Hawaii, Chamber of Commerce Hawaii, Society of Human Resource Management, National Federation of Independent Business Hawaii Chapter, Hawai‘i Restaurant Association, and Maui Chamber of Commerce.

Your Committees find that several states, including California and Colorado, have recently enacted laws requiring job advertisements to include pay. These laws have helped reduce pay inequalities and have been beneficial for employers, current employees, and prospective employees. Employers and employees can spend less time in job interviews because prospective employees will not apply to jobs with a pay level that they feel is too low, and current employees can seek higher wages because they are able to see the salaries of new employees. Your Committees believe that requiring employers to include the hourly rate or salary range as part of a job advertisement will help increase pay transparency and equal pay for all employees. Your Committees also believe that, to ensure pay equality, employees in protected categories that do substantially similar work as other employees should be paid at the same rate.

Your Committees have amended this measure by:

(1) Changing the effective date to June 30, 3000, to encourage further discussion; and

(2) Making technical, nonsubstantive amendments for the purposes of clarity, consistency, and style.

Your Committees respectfully request your Committee on Judiciary & Hawaiian Affairs, should it deliberate on this measure, to consider whether job performance should also be a factor in a job's pay rate.

As affirmed by the records of votes of the members of your Committees on Economic Development and Labor & Government Operations that are attached to this report, your Committees are in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 1057, S.D. 2, as amended herein, and recommend that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 1057, S.D. 2, H.D. 1, and be referred to your Committee on Judiciary & Hawaiian Affairs.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committees on Economic Development and Labor & Government Operations,

____________________________ SCOT Z. MATAYOSHI, Chair

____________________________ DANIEL HOLT, Chair