Prohibitions relating to prospective employees’ salary and benefit history

(a) In general The Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 201 et seq.) is amended by inserting after section 7 the following new section: 8. Requirements and prohibitions relating to wage, salary, and benefit history (a) In general It shall be an unlawful practice for an employer to— (1) rely on the wage history of a prospective employee in considering the prospective employee for employment in a position as an employee who in any workweek is engaged in commerce or in the production of goods for commerce, or is employed in an enterprise engaged in commerce or in the production of goods for commerce, including requiring that a prospective employee’s prior wages satisfy minimum or maximum criteria as a condition of being considered for such employment; (2) rely on the wage history of a prospective employee in determining the wages for such prospective employee for a position described in paragraph (1) of the employer, except that an employer may rely on wage history if it is voluntarily provided by a prospective employee, after the employer makes an offer of employment in such a position with an offer of compensation to the prospective employee for such position, to support a wage higher than the wage offered by the employer; (3) seek from a prospective employee for a position described in paragraph (1) or any current or former employer of such prospective employee the wage history of the prospective employee, except that an employer may seek to confirm prior wage information only after an offer of employment for such a position with compensation has been made to the prospective employee and the prospective employee responds to the offer by providing prior wage information to support a wage higher than that offered by the employer; or (4) discharge or in any other manner retaliate against any employee or prospective employee for a position described in paragraph (1) because the employee or prospective employee— (A) opposed any act or practice made unlawful by this section; or (B) took an action for which discrimination is forbidden under section 15(a)(3). (b) Definition In this section, the term wage history means the wages paid to the prospective employee by the prospective employee’s current employer or previous employer.. (b) Penalties Section 16 of such Act (29 U.S.C. 216) is amended by adding at the end the following new subsection: (f) (1) Any person who violates the provisions of section 8 shall— (A) be subject to a civil penalty of $5,000 for a first offense, increased by an additional $1,000 for each subsequent offense, not to exceed $10,000; and (B) be liable to each employee or prospective employee who was the subject of the violation for special damages not to exceed $10,000 plus attorneys’ fees, and shall be subject to such injunctive relief as may be appropriate. (2) An action to recover the liability described in paragraph (1)(B) may be maintained against any employer (including a public agency) in any Federal or State court of competent jurisdiction by any one or more employees or prospective employees for and on behalf of— (A) the employees or prospective employees; and (B) other employees or prospective employees similarly situated.. (c) Conforming amendment Section 10 of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 210) is repealed.