Work · Pay transparency
Pay Transparency Law in Pennsylvania
Whether an employer in Pennsylvania must disclose the salary range, where it has to appear, who it covers, and what to do if a posting hides the pay. This is separate from your right to discuss wages with coworkers. Cited to the statute.
What the pay transparency law requires in Pennsylvania
Who must disclose the range, where it has to appear, and the situations the rule does not reach.
Pay-transparency law is expanding fast, with new states and effective dates arriving regularly. Pennsylvania is currently silent for private employers, but bills have been introduced. Confirm the current status before relying on the absence of a rule.
| What the law requires | What it means |
|---|---|
| No statewide pay-transparency law for private employers | Pennsylvania Title 43 (Labor) has no provision requiring a private employer to disclose a salary or wage range in a job posting. There is nothing to cite as a disclosure rule because the state has never enacted one for private employers, so Pennsylvania is silent on the point. |
| No duty to share a range on request | Because no statewide law requires it, a Pennsylvania private employer does not have to give an applicant or a current employee the pay scale for a position on request. An employer may choose to post a range, but it is not compelled to. |
| The executive order reaches state agencies only | A governor executive order bars Commonwealth state agencies from asking applicants about current or past salary. That is a salary-history limit on the state as an employer, not a disclosure rule, and it does not apply to private employers. |
| Where it does not apply | What it means |
|---|---|
| Another state law can still reach the job | A remote job that could be performed from a state with a posting law, such as California, New York, or Illinois, can trigger that state disclosure rule even when the employer sits in Pennsylvania. The absence of a statewide Pennsylvania rule does not cancel another state requirement. |
| A local ordinance may apply in some cities | Some Pennsylvania localities, notably Philadelphia and Pittsburgh, restrict salary-history questions for employers within their borders. Those are local rules, and they are salary-history limits rather than a statewide posting mandate. |
| Pending legislation could change the answer | Pay-transparency bills have been introduced in the Pennsylvania General Assembly but have not become law. If one passes, private employers of a set size could be required to disclose ranges, so the current answer is not permanent. |
What you can do right now
Concrete, neutral steps if a job in Pennsylvania hides the pay range. This is legal information, not legal advice.
- Do not expect a range on a private posting
A Pennsylvania private employer is not breaking state law by advertising a job with no salary information. If pay matters to you, ask about the range early in the process.
- Ask for the pay range directly
Since no statewide rule forces disclosure, the practical step is to ask. Requesting the expected range for the role is reasonable, though a private employer is not legally required to answer.
- Check local salary-history rules
If you are applying in Philadelphia or Pittsburgh, a local ordinance may bar the employer from asking your salary history. That is different from a posting mandate, but it can affect the hiring conversation.
- Check whether another state law applies
If the role is remote and could be performed from a state with a posting law, that state rule may require a range. Where the job can be worked can matter more than where the company is based.
If a posting omits a required pay range, the state labor department takes complaints and can explain how the rule is enforced and any penalty.
→ Pennsylvania Department of Labor and IndustryThis is general legal information, not legal advice. Coverage turns on employer size and where the job can be performed, so confirm your situation against the statute.
What workers in Pennsylvania get wrong about pay transparency
Pennsylvania has no statewide pay-transparency law for private employers. No Pennsylvania statute makes a private employer put a pay range in a job posting, share one with an applicant, or hand one over on request. Title 43 of the Pennsylvania Statutes, the labor title, covers wage payment and the minimum wage, but none of it creates a disclosure duty. The state has acted on its own hiring: a governor executive order bars Commonwealth state agencies from asking applicants about current or past salary. That order reaches state-agency hiring only, and even then it is a salary-history limit rather than a rule to post a range, so it does not touch private employers. Two other things matter. Philadelphia and Pittsburgh restrict salary-history questions locally, and a remote job that could be performed from a state with a posting law, such as California or New York, can trigger that state rule. For a private Pennsylvania job, though, disclosing a range stays voluntary.
Common questions
Does Pennsylvania require salary ranges in job postings?
No. Pennsylvania has no statewide pay-transparency law for private employers, so a private employer is not required to put a salary range in a job posting. Disclosure is voluntary.
Do employers have to post salary in Pennsylvania?
No statewide law requires a private employer to disclose pay in a posting or to provide a pay range on request. A governor executive order limits salary-history questions, but only for state agencies.
Does the Pennsylvania executive order apply to private employers?
No. The order bars Commonwealth state agencies from asking about salary history in their own hiring. It does not require private employers to post pay or to answer pay questions.
Do Philadelphia or Pittsburgh have pay rules?
Both restrict salary-history questions for employers within their borders. Those are local salary-history limits, not a statewide posting mandate, but they can affect a hiring conversation there.
Could another state pay-transparency law apply to a Pennsylvania job?
Yes. A remote role that could be performed from a state with a posting law, such as California, New York, or Illinois, can require the range even if the employer is based in Pennsylvania.
Not legal advicePlainStatute provides plain-language summaries of public law for general information only. This is not legal advice. Statutes change; always confirm current requirements with the official source linked above before acting.