I 

118TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 5053 

To amend the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 to enhance provisions 

related to wage discrimination, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JULY 27, 2023 

Ms. STEFANIK (for herself, Ms. FOXX, Mr. VALADAO, Mr. DIAZ-BALART, Mr. 

ALLEN, Mrs. MILLER-MEEKS, and Mr. KELLY of Pennsylvania) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Education and the Workforce 

A BILL 

To amend the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 to enhance 

provisions related to wage discrimination, and for other 

purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be referred to as the ‘‘Wage Equity 

5 Act of 2023’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 (1) In 1963, Congress passed on a bipartisan 

8 basis the Equal Pay Act of 1963 to prohibit dis9 crimination on account of sex in the payment of 


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1 wages for equal work performed by employees for 

2 employers engaged in commerce or in the production 

3 of goods for commerce. 

4 (2) Following the passage of such Act, in 1964, 

5 Congress passed on a bipartisan basis the Civil 

6 Rights Act of 1964. Since the passage of both the 

7 Equal Pay Act of 1963 and the Civil Rights Act of 

8 1964, women have made significant strides, both in 

9 the workforce and in their educational pursuits. 

10 (3) Prior to the COVID–19 pandemic, there 

11 were over 77,000,000 women in the workforce, the 

12 most in American history. Of the 2,000,000 jobs 

13 created in 2019, 53 percent went to women. This 

14 follows a trend that has been rising for some time. 

15 Women are graduating from college at a higher rate 

16 than their male counter parts, making up 61 percent 

17 of all college degrees conferred in 2018. Additionally, 

18 according to a recent survey of working women, 

19 more than half are their family’s primary bread20 winner. 

21 (4) The COVID–19 pandemic has had a signifi22 cant impact on working women, resulting in over 2 

23 million women leaving the workforce since February 

24 2020. 


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1 (5) Despite these advances there is still concern 

2 among the American public that gender-based wage 

3 discrimination has not been eliminated. 

4 SEC. 3. CLARIFYING SEX-BASED DISCRIMINATION PROHIBI5 TION. 

6 Section 6(d)(1) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 

7 1938 (29 U.S.C. 206(d)(1)) is amended by inserting 

8 ‘‘bona fide business-related’’ after ‘‘any other’’. 

9 SEC. 4. JOB AND WAGE ANALYSIS. 

10 Section 16 of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 

11 (29 U.S.C. 216) is amended by adding at the end the fol12 lowing: 

13 ‘‘(f)(1) An employer shall not be liable in an action 

14 brought against the employer for a violation of section 

15 6(d) if— 

16 ‘‘(A) during the period beginning on the date 

17 that is 3 years before the date on which the action 

18 is brought and ending on the date that is 1 day be19 fore the date on which the action is brought, such 

20 employer completes a job and wage analysis audit to 

21 determine whether there are differentials in wage 

22 rates among such employees that may violate section 

23 6(d); 

24 ‘‘(B) such employer takes reasonable steps to 

25 remedy any such differentials; 


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1 ‘‘(C) such job and wage analysis audit is con2 ducted and such reasonable steps are taken in good 

3 faith to investigate whether any such differentials 

4 exist; and 

5 ‘‘(D) such audit is reasonable in detail and 

6 scope with respect to the size of the employer. 

7 ‘‘(2) A job and wage analysis audit under this section 

8 and remedial action taken in response to the findings of 

9 such audit— 

10 ‘‘(A) may only be admissible by the employer 

11 for the purposes of showing— 

12 ‘‘(i) such audit was conducted; and 

13 ‘‘(ii) such reasonable steps were taken; and 

14 ‘‘(B) shall not be discoverable or admissible for 

15 any other purpose in any claim against the em16 ployer. 

17 ‘‘(3) An employer who has not completed a job and 

18 wage analysis audit under this subsection shall not be sub19 ject to a negative or adverse inference as a result of not 

20 having completed such audit. 

21 ‘‘(4) An employer who has completed a job and wage 

22 analysis audit that does not meet the requirements of sub23 paragraph (D) of paragraph (1), but otherwise meets the 

24 requirements of such paragraph, shall not be liable for liq25 uidated damages under subsection (b). 


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1 ‘‘(5) In this section— 

2 ‘‘(A) the term ‘job and wage analysis audit’ 

3 means an audit conducted by the employer for the 

4 purpose of identifying wage disparities among em5 ployees on the basis of sex; and 

6 ‘‘(B) the term ‘reasonable steps’, with respect 

7 to differentials in wages among employees that may 

8 violate section 6(d), means steps that are reasonable 

9 to address such differentials taking into account— 

10 ‘‘(i) the amount of time that has passed 

11 since the date on which the audit was initiated; 

12 ‘‘(ii) the nature and degree of progress re13 sulting from such reasonable steps toward com14 pliance with section 6(d) compared to the num15 ber of employees with respect to whom a viola16 tion may exist and the amount of the wage rate 

17 differentials among such employees; and 

18 ‘‘(iii) the size and resources of the em19 ployer.’’. 

20 SEC. 5. WAGE HISTORY; DISCUSSION OF WAGES. 

21 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Fair Labor Standards Act of 

22 1938 (29 U.S.C. 201 et seq.) is amended by inserting 

23 after section 7 the following new section: 


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1 ‘‘SEC. 8. PROVISIONS RELATING TO WAGE HISTORY AND 

2 DISCUSSION OF WAGE. 

3 ‘‘(a) REQUIREMENTS AND PROHIBITIONS RELATING

4 TO WAGE HISTORY.—It shall be an unlawful practice for 

5 a person to, after the date of enactment of the Wage Eq6 uity Act of 2023— 

7 ‘‘(1) rely on the wage history of a prospective 

8 employee— 

9 ‘‘(A) in considering such prospective em10 ployee for employment, including by requiring 

11 that the wage history of such prospective em12 ployee satisfy minimum or maximum criteria as 

13 a condition of being considered for employment; 

14 or 

15 ‘‘(B) in determining the rate of wage for 

16 such prospective employee; or 

17 ‘‘(2) seek, or require a prospective employee to 

18 disclose, the wage history of such prospective em19 ployee. 

20 ‘‘(b) VOLUNTARY DISCLOSURE EXCEPTIONS.— 

21 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Subsection (a)(1) shall not 

22 apply with respect to a prospective employee who 

23 voluntarily discloses the wage history of such pro24 spective employee. 

25 ‘‘(2) WAGE HISTORY VERIFICATION.—Notwith26 standing subsection (a)(2), a person may take acVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:47 Aug 16, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5053.IH H5053

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1 tions necessary to verify the wage history of a pro2 spective employee if such wage history is voluntarily 

3 disclosed to the person by such prospective em4 ployee. 

5 ‘‘(c) PRIOR INQUIRIES.—Subsection (a) shall not 

6 apply with respect to the wage history of an employee ac7 quired by an employer before the date of enactment of 

8 the Wage Equity Act of 2023, including a current employ9 ee’s wage history with another employer that was re10 quested and used to set an employee’s starting wage be11 fore such date and which is embedded in an employee’s 

12 pay and pay increases after such date. 

13 ‘‘(d) PROHIBITIONS RELATING TO DISCUSSION OF

14 WAGES.—Subject to subsection (c), it shall be an unlawful 

15 practice for an employer— 

16 ‘‘(1) to prohibit an employee from inquiring 

17 about, discussing, or disclosing the wage of— 

18 ‘‘(A) the employee; or 

19 ‘‘(B) any other employee of the employer if 

20 such employee has voluntarily disclosed the 

21 wage of such employee; 

22 ‘‘(2) to prohibit an employee from requesting 

23 from the employer an explanation of differentials in 

24 compensation among employees; or 


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1 ‘‘(3) to take an adverse employment action 

2 against an employee for— 

3 ‘‘(A) conduct described under paragraphs 

4 (1) or (2); or 

5 ‘‘(B) encouraging employees to engage in 

6 conduct described in such paragraphs. 

7 ‘‘(e) LIMITATIONS RELATING TO DISCUSSION OF

8 WAGES.— 

9 ‘‘(1) TIME AND PLACE LIMITATIONS.—An em10 ployer may impose reasonable time, place, and man11 ner limitations on conduct described under sub12 section (c) if such limitations are written and avail13 able to each employee. 

14 ‘‘(2) INVOLUNTARY DISCLOSURE.—An employer 

15 may prohibit an employee from discussing the wages 

16 of any other employee if such other employee did not 

17 voluntarily disclose such wages to the employee dis18 cussing such wages. 

19 ‘‘(f) PAY EXPECTATION CONVERSATION.—Nothing 

20 in this section shall be construed to prevent a person 

21 from— 

22 ‘‘(1) inquiring about the pay expectations of a 

23 prospective employee; or 


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1 ‘‘(2) providing information to such employee 

2 about the compensation and benefits offered in rela3 tion to the position.’’. 

4 (b) DEFINITIONS.—Section 3 of the Fair Labor 

5 Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 203) is amended by 

6 adding at the end the following: 

7 ‘‘(z) ‘Prospective employee’ means an individual who 

8 took an affirmative step to seek employment with a person 

9 and who is not currently employed by such person, a par10 ent, subsidiary, predecessor, or related company of such 

11 person, or an employer connected by a purchase agree12 ment with such person. 

13 ‘‘(aa) ‘Wage history’ means the wages paid to the 

14 prospective employee by the prospective employee’s cur15 rent employer or any previous employer of such em16 ployee.’’. 

17 (c) RETALIATION.—Section 15(a)(3) of the Fair 

18 Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 215(a)(3)) is 

19 amended— 

20 (1) by inserting ‘‘or prospective employee’’ after 

21 ‘‘any employee’’; and 

22 (2) by inserting ‘‘or prospective employee’’ after 

23 ‘‘such employee’’. 

24 (d) PENALTY.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 16(b) of the Fair 

2 Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 216(b)) is 

3 amended by inserting ‘‘Any person who violates the 

4 provisions of section 8 with respect to an employee 

5 or prospective employee shall be liable to such em6 ployee in an amount equal to the difference between 

7 the amount that the employee or prospective em8 ployee would have received but for such violation 

9 and the amount received by such employee or pro10 spective employee, and in an additional equal 

11 amount as liquidated damages.’’ after ‘‘tips unlaw12 fully kept by the employer, and in an additional 

13 equal amount as liquidated damages.’’. 

14 (2) CIVIL MONETARY PENALTY.—Section 

15 16(e)(2) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 

16 (29 U.S.C. 216(e)(2)) is amended by striking ‘‘6 or 

17 7’’ and inserting ‘‘6, 7, or 8’’. 

18 SEC. 6. WAGE NEGOTIATION SKILLS EDUCATION. 

19 (a) PROGRAM AUTHORIZED.— 

20 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Labor, in 

21 consultation with the Secretary of Education, is au22 thorized to establish and carry out a grant program. 

23 (2) GRANTS.—In carrying out the program 

24 under paragraph (1), the Secretary of Labor may 

25 make grants on a competitive basis to eligible entiVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:47 Aug 16, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5053.IH H5053

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1 ties to carry out wage negotiation skills education 

2 programs for the purposes of addressing wage dis3 parities, including through outreach to women and 

4 girls. 

5 (3) ELIGIBLE ENTITIES.—To be eligible to re6 ceive a grant under this subsection, an entity shall 

7 be a public agency, such as a State, a local govern8 ment in a metropolitan statistical area (as defined 

9 by the Office of Management and Budget), a State 

10 educational agency, or a local educational agency, a 

11 private nonprofit organization, or a community12 based organization. 

13 (4) APPLICATION.—To be eligible to receive a 

14 grant under this subsection, an entity shall submit 

15 an application to the Secretary of Labor at such 

16 time, in such manner, and containing such informa17 tion as the Secretary of Labor may require. 

18 (5) USE OF FUNDS.—An entity that receives a 

19 grant under this subsection shall use the funds made 

20 available through the grant to carry out an effective 

21 wage negotiation skills education program for the 

22 purposes described in paragraph (2). 

23 (b) INCORPORATING EDUCATION INTO EXISTING

24 PROGRAMS.—The Secretary of Labor and the Secretary 

25 of Education shall issue regulations or policy guidance 


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1 that provides for integrating the wage negotiation skills 

2 education, to the extent practicable, into programs author3 ized under— 

4 (1) in the case of the Secretary of Education, 

5 the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 

6 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6301 et seq.), the Carl D. Perkins 

7 Career and Technical Education Act of 2006 (20 

8 U.S.C. 2301 et seq.), the Higher Education Act of 

9 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001 et seq.), and other programs 

10 carried out by the Department of Education that the 

11 Secretary of Education determines to be appro12 priate; and 

13 (2) in the case of the Secretary of Labor, the 

14 Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 

15 U.S.C. 3101 et seq.), and other programs carried 

16 out by the Department of Labor that the Secretary 

17 of Labor determines to be appropriate. 

18 (c) REPORT.—Not later than 18 months after the 

19 date of enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter, 

20 the Secretary of Labor, in consultation with the Secretary 

21 of Education, shall prepare and submit to Congress a re22 port describing the activities conducted under this section 

23 and evaluating the effectiveness of such activities in 

24 achieving the purposes of this section. 


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1 SEC. 7. GAO STUDY. 

2 The Comptroller General shall, not later than 180 

3 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, submit 

4 to Congress a study on the causes and effects of— 

5 (1) wage disparities among men and women; 

6 (2) with respect to employees that leave the 

7 workforce for parental reasons (commonly referred 

8 to as the ‘‘Manager’s Gap’’), the impact on wages 

9 and opportunity potential; and 

10 (3) the disparities in wage negotiation skills 

11 among men and women upon entering the workforce. 

Æ 


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