Your pay rights in District of Columbia

Wage Transparency Omnibus Amendment Act of 2023 (D.C. Law 25-138), amending the Wage Transparency Act of 2014 (D.C. Code § 32-1451 et seq. (postings at § 32-1453.01; pay history ban at § 32-1452(4)-(5); enforcement at § 32-1455))

Job posting rules in effect since June 30, 2024

DC employers must list a good-faith minimum and maximum salary or hourly pay in every job posting, and must tell you about healthcare benefits before your first interview. Employers may not screen you based on your pay history.

Who is covered

Any individual, firm, association or corporation with at least one employee in DC. The DC and federal governments are not covered. The Attorney General says the rules apply to all job postings seeking employees in DC, no matter how or where the employer creates or shares the posting.

What a job posting must show

The minimum and maximum projected salary or hourly pay, from the lowest to the highest the employer in good faith believes it would pay at the time of posting (applies to job, promotion and transfer postings)
Before the first interview, the employer must tell candidates about any healthcare benefits (this does not have to be in the posting itself)

Pay history

Employers may not screen you based on your pay history, require it to meet a minimum or maximum, or make you disclose it to get an interview or stay in the running. They also may not ask your former employers for it.

What you can do

If an employer leaves out the pay range or healthcare information, you may ask for it.
Employers cannot stop you from asking about, discussing or comparing pay, and cannot retaliate against you for doing so or for filing a complaint.
Report violations to the DC Office of the Attorney General: (202) 724-7730, workers@dc.gov or trabajadores@dc.gov.
The law does not let you sue the employer yourself; the District enforces it.

Where to report a posting without pay

Office of the Attorney General for the District of Columbia, Workers' Rights and Antifraud Section

Civil fines of $1,000 for the first violation, $5,000 for the second, and $20,000 for each later violation. The Attorney General can also sue for restitution, or for injunctive, compensatory or other relief for workers or the public, and recover attorneys' fees and statutory penalties equal to the fines.

Sources

D.C. Law 25-138 became law on March 5, 2024, and applies as of June 30, 2024. No amendments after 2024 were found. The law gives fines to 'the Mayor' (administrative adjudication) as well as the Attorney General, and the Department of Employment Services' Office of Wage-Hour also lists this law, so either may be involved. Employers must also put up a workplace notice of these rights.