Maryland Legislature Passes Expansion of Equal Pay Law

The Maryland General Assembly has passed an expansion of the state's equal pay law.

The House of Delegates gave the bill final approval on a 100-36 vote Saturday. The bill strengthens state law that prohibits pay discrimination based on gender. The measure also prohibits discrimination based on gender identity.

It prohibits businesses from retaliating against employees for discussing or disclosing salaries.

Senators debated a provision about the duration in which former employees could sue employers after discovering pay inequities. Lawmakers decided to make the time period three years after the date of the employee's last paycheck, instead of three years after discovery of the inequity.

Lawmakers also decided that employers would only be liable in a civil action if they knew or reasonably should have known they violated the law.

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