Some US pay transparency laws require employers to disclose more than base salary. Colorado, Washington and Illinois are prominent examples. Washington requires covered employers to include a wage scale or salary range, a general description of all benefits and a general description of other compensation. Illinois requires covered job postings to include pay scale and benefits, with official guidance treating benefits as including health care, retirement, paid or protected time off and other qualifying benefits, and other compensation such as bonuses, commissions or stock-related incentives. Colorado also requires covered postings to include compensation, benefits and other compensation. Other states may require only the salary or hourly range, so employers should not assume that one national benefits template is legally required everywhere.
Jurisdiction: United States
Some States Require More Than the Salary Range
Salary transparency is often described as a requirement to publish minimum and maximum pay, but several major state laws go further. Washington requires covered postings to include the wage scale or salary range, a general description of benefits and a general description of other compensation. Illinois requires pay scale and benefits in covered postings. Colorado's rules likewise require compensation together with benefits and other compensation, as well as an application deadline for covered opportunities. Employers that use only a salary-range field across the country can therefore miss required disclosure elements even when the range itself is accurate.
A General Benefits Description Should Identify the Benefits Available for the Role
The required level of detail is usually less than a full plan document but more than a vague statement that benefits may be available. Washington explains that a general description of benefits includes health care, retirement, paid days off and other fringe benefits reportable for federal tax purposes. Illinois guidance similarly lists health care, retirement, paid leave, job-protected time off and other qualifying benefits. The disclosure should therefore give applicants a meaningful idea of the benefit categories associated with the specific position. Generic language that forces the applicant to guess whether a particular job receives the benefit may not satisfy the applicable rule.
Benefits and Other Compensation Are Separate Concepts
A compliant posting may need to distinguish traditional employee benefits from additional forms of compensation. Washington identifies bonuses, commissions, profit sharing, stock options and similar amounts as examples of other compensation. Illinois guidance likewise treats anticipated or possible bonuses, stock options and other incentives as part of the broader pay-scale-and-benefits disclosure framework. Employers should therefore avoid putting every item into one undifferentiated benefits sentence. A cleaner structure is base pay or range, benefits, and other compensation, with each field populated according to the jurisdiction and the actual compensation design for the role.
The Posting Does Not Usually Need the Full Plan Terms
Pay transparency laws generally seek useful applicant information, not reproduction of the employer's entire health plan, retirement plan or leave policy. Illinois states that a posting does not need to include every term, condition or dollar value, but it should describe at least the nature of the benefits and what they provide. Washington similarly frames the duty as a general description. Employers should resist both extremes: a massive legal disclosure that overwhelms the job posting and a statement so generic that it conveys no meaningful information. The goal is a concise, position-relevant description that accurately reflects what the employer expects to provide.
Hyperlinks Can Work, but Only When They Lead to the Right Information
Some states allow employers to use hyperlinks for benefits or pay information if the linked material is directly relevant and easily accessible. Illinois expressly allows a specific posting to satisfy pay and benefits disclosure through an appropriate hyperlink and also permits reference to an up-to-date general benefits page when the page identifies the benefits available for the posted position. Its guidance warns against linking to lengthy or generic material that does not tell the applicant what applies to the role. Washington also allows electronic postings to use a link for more detailed benefits and other-compensation information. Employers should test links regularly and preserve evidence of what the applicant could see when the posting was active.
Do Not Assume Every State Requires Benefits Disclosure
The absence of a benefits field can be lawful in one state and incomplete in another. New York State, for example, requires the compensation range but its Department of Labor explains that benefits and other forms of compensation are not part of the statutory range itself. California's principal pay-scale posting rule similarly focuses on the salary or hourly wage range rather than requiring a full benefits description in the posting. This variation is why employers should map disclosure fields by jurisdiction. A national template can include benefits voluntarily, but compliance analysis should still distinguish what the law requires from what the employer chooses to publish as a broader transparency practice.
Build Benefits Disclosure Into the Recruiting Data Model
Operationally, benefits disclosure should be driven by structured data rather than free-form recruiter memory. Each requisition can carry fields for base pay, benefits eligibility, retirement, paid leave, other compensation, commission status and applicable jurisdiction. The recruiting system can then display the legally required fields for the location while keeping the wording synchronized with current benefit plans. HR, benefits and compensation teams should assign ownership for updates so that a plan change does not leave hundreds of active postings with stale information. The compliance process should also retain the published version of the posting when state recordkeeping rules require it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do all salary transparency laws require benefits in the job posting?
No. States differ. Washington, Illinois and Colorado are examples of jurisdictions that require benefits or related compensation information in covered postings, while other states focus primarily on the salary or hourly range.
What benefits should be listed when disclosure is required?
Official guidance commonly includes health care, retirement and paid time off, with the exact categories determined by the applicable state law and agency guidance.
Can employers link to a benefits page instead of listing everything in the posting?
Some states allow hyperlinks if they lead directly to relevant, accessible information for the specific position. Employers should follow the controlling state's conditions rather than relying on a generic company benefits page.
Related Guides
Official Sources
- Washington Labor and Industries - Equal Pay and Opportunities Act
- Illinois Department of Labor - Pay Transparency and Promotional Opportunity
- Illinois Department of Labor - Equal Pay Act Pay Transparency FAQ
- Colorado Department of Labor and Employment - Equal Pay Transparency Rules
- New York Department of Labor - Pay Transparency FAQs
Requirements and practices differ by jurisdiction and organisation. Check current local law, official guidance and professional advice for a specific situation.