Paid sick leave seems to have stolen the thunder from the Colorado Equal Pay For Equal Work Act, but the EPEW Act also came into effect on January 1, 2021 and brings some major changes in how employers hire and compensate employees.
In a nutshell, EPEW prohibits discrimination in pay on the basis of gender. To this end, Colorado employers are now required to announce all advancement opportunities to all employees, and each job posting must include a predetermined pay range. This law also prohibits seeking or relying upon a prospective employee’s past pay history in determining compensation, and also discriminating against employees who refuse to provide their pay history.
Something to also note is that the EPEW Act now has a defined list of 6 approved reasons for pay disparity (seniority, merit, quantity/quality of production, geographic location, education/training/experience, and job-required travel.) This is different than the federal Equal Pay Act, which has a much broader catchall provision. The EPEW Act also encourages employers to proactively address equal pay issues through a self-audit, which may later be used as a defense against the law’s liquidated damages provision.
The full text of the EPEW Act can be found here.
