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Pay Secrecy Bans and the Sharing of Salary Information Among US Workers

Author

Listed:
  • Kristen Underhill
  • Zohn Rosen
  • Lisa M. Bates
  • Francesca Manzi
  • Leib Litman

Abstract

Many states bar employers from requiring or expecting employees to keep pay secret, and from retaliating against employees who discuss pay. In a nationally representative survey of 2369 US adults in 2021, people living in states with state laws barring pay secrecy reported more supportive attitudes regarding information‐sharing and less concern about offending co‐workers by asking about salary, but little to no difference in information‐sharing behavior, beliefs or accuracy regarding the laws. Men were consistently more supportive of information‐sharing than women, but the gender differential did not differ between groups of states. We randomized participants in each set of states to learn the law of their jurisdiction. In states with pay secrecy bans, participants who learned about the law reported significantly greater comfort asking others and intentions to ask others about compensation, compared to those who were not given information about the law.

Suggested Citation

  • Kristen Underhill & Zohn Rosen & Lisa M. Bates & Francesca Manzi & Leib Litman, 2026. "Pay Secrecy Bans and the Sharing of Salary Information Among US Workers," Journal of Empirical Legal Studies, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 23(1), pages 128-152, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:wly:empleg:v:23:y:2026:i:1:p:128-152
    DOI: 10.1111/jels.70016
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
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    3. Leib Litman & Jonathan Robinson & Zohn Rosen & Cheskie Rosenzweig & Joshua Waxman & Lisa M Bates, 2020. "The persistence of pay inequality: The gender pay gap in an anonymous online labor market," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 15(2), pages 1-19, February.
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