O Potential Employer, Where Art Thou Salary Range? One Month to Prepare for Cleveland’s Pay Transparency Ordinance | Frantz Ward LLP

Cleveland’s Pay Transparency Ordinance takes effect on Monday, October 27, 2025. The Ordinance aims to reduce wage disparities among Cleveland workers, relying on studies indicating that basing pay on prior compensation may reinforce existing wage gaps.

Who Must Comply with the Ordinance?

The Ordinance applies to employers with 15 or more employees working within Cleveland’s city limits, including remote workers. Employment agencies are also subject to the Ordinance’s requirements when operating on behalf of a covered employer.

What Positions Does the Ordinance Apply to?

Employers should be mindful of where the principal job duties of the position will be performed and where applications are reviewed. This is due to the Ordinance defining covered applicants as individuals:

a) Applying for employment to be performed within the geographic boundaries of Cleveland; and

b) Whose application will be solicited, received, processed, or considered within the geographic boundaries of Cleveland.

What Does the Ordinance Mandate?

Covered employers must include the position’s salary range or scale in job postings or notifications that offer the opportunity to apply for employment.

Covered employers cannot:

a) Inquire about a covered applicant’s salary history during the hiring process;

b) Refuse to hire or disfavor a covered applicant who refuses to disclose their salary history; and

c) Rely solely on the covered applicant’s salary history, except as provided below, in determining the salary for the applicant during the hiring process.

The Ordinance’s prohibitions do not apply when:

• A covered employer takes action pursuant to federal, state, or local laws that specifically authorize reliance on a covered applicant’s salary history.
• The salary for the open position is determined pursuant to procedures established by a collective bargaining agreement.
• The covered applicant is re-hired, internally transferred, or promoted, and the salary history is already known to the employer.
• The applicant makes a voluntary and unprompted disclosure of their salary history.

How Will the Ordinance be Enforced?

The Fair Employment Wage Board (FEWB) has been tasked with investigating complaints and finding resolution through education, conference, conciliation, and/or persuasion. If the FEWB determines that a violation has occurred, but the complaint remains unresolved after 90 days from the date the employer receives the complaint, the FEWB may impose civil penalties.