Equal Pay Lawyers in Los Angeles, CA

How the Act Determines Unequal Pay

Job title alone doesn’t determine comparability. When a pay difference exists for substantially similar work, the employer must affirmatively prove it is due to a seniority system, a merit system, a production-based system, or a bona fide factor other than sex, race, or ethnicity, and that the factor accounts for the entire wage difference. Prior salary history can’t be used to justify a pay gap based on any of those characteristics. SB 642, effective January 1, 2026, expanded the definition of wages to include all forms of compensation: salary, overtime pay, bonuses, stock, stock options, profit sharing, life insurance, and vacation and holiday pay. An equal pay claim can encompass the full compensation picture, not just base pay.

Employer Retaliation

It’s illegal for employers to demote, wrongfully terminate, or otherwise retaliate against employees for discussing wages with peers, inquiring about fellow employees’ wages, or taking legal action for unequal pay. California law goes further under SB 497: if an employer takes an adverse action within 90 days of an employee invoking or assisting with enforcement of the Equal Pay Act, a rebuttable presumption of retaliation arises, and the burden shifts to the employer to prove the action wasn’t retaliatory.

Filing Deadlines & What You Can Recover

SB 642, effective January 1, 2026, extended the statute of limitations for equal pay civil claims to three years from the last discriminatory pay act, regardless of whether the violation was willful. Employees may also recover wages for the full period during which a violation exists, up to a maximum of six years. Each paycheck reflecting unequal pay is treated as a separate violation, which affects how far back a claim can reach. Workers can file a lawsuit directly in state or federal court without first filing an administrative claim with the California Labor Commissioner’s Office.

Pay Transparency & Salary History Protections

California Labor Code section 432.3 prohibits employers from asking job applicants about their salary history and from using prior salary to decide whether to offer employment or what salary to offer. Employers with 15 or more employees must include a pay scale in job postings, a requirement in effect since January 1, 2023. SB 642 revised the definition of “pay scale” to mean a good-faith estimate of the salary or hourly wage range the employer reasonably expects to pay upon hire. Any employee may also request the pay scale for their current position, and employers are required to provide it.

These transparency protections make it easier to identify when you’re being paid less than peers in comparable roles and can strengthen the foundation for an equal pay claim when a disparity surfaces.