On Aug. 11, Illinois became the ninth state to pass a pay transparency law.

Gov. J.B. Pritzker inked HB3129 on Aug. 11, effectively amending the Equal Pay Act of 2003. Under the new legislation, employers with 15 or more employees must disclose pay scales and benefits offered in job postings. Additionally, promotion opportunities must be posted to current employees on the same day they're posted externally.

As of June, more than one-quarter of the U.S. labor force was covered by a salary transparency law — but their effectiveness has been called into question. Some companies post extremely broad pay ranges to account for differences in applicants' experience, making it difficult for job-seekers to discern where they'd fall.

Proponents of salary transparency laws say they can help close the gender wage gap and move the needle towards pay parity. If employees in an organization are aware of what their colleagues make, they might be more apt to argue for fair compensation themselves.

Illinois' new law takes effect Jan. 1, 2025.