Massachusetts Publishes FAQs on Pay Transparency Act as Deadline Nears

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts has published frequently asked questions (FAQS) on its new pay transparency law requiring employers with 100 or more employees in Massachusetts during the prior calendar year to submit workforce data to the commonwealth by February 1 each year, with the upcoming 2025 deadline extended to February 3. Employers may, but are not required to, include non-Massachusetts employees in their submissions. 

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development’s new FAQs focus on the Massachusetts Salary Range Transparency Act (MSRTA) and new reporting requirements. The FAQs include information for employers on requirements in the act to report wage and demographic data. Employers with 100 or more employees in Massachusetts during the prior calendar year must submit annual, industry-based “aggregate wage data reports” that include “workplace demographic and pay data categorized by race, ethnicity, sex and job category.”

Starting in 2025, covered employers must provide to the secretary of the commonwealth the information contained in their most recently filed federal EEO-1 report, although they may modify the report to exclude non-Massachusetts employees.

The FAQs make the following clarifications:

• Employers need not create new reports or make changes to their existing EEO-1 report. Employers may “file the same copy of the EEO report you filed with the EEOC.” Employers have the option, however, to customize a report (if they so choose) reflecting the required data for only Massachusetts employees.
• Reports do not need to include pay data at this time, since pay data is not part of the current EEOC reporting requirements. The FAQs clarify that if the EEOC decides to require pay data in the future as part of the EEO-1 report, “it would also become part of the required filing in Massachusetts.”
• Individual data will not be made public; only aggregated data will be published.
• The initial EEO-1 report is due by February 1, 2025, and annually on the same date thereafter. Since February 1st falls on a Saturday this year, reports will be accepted until Monday, February 3, 2025. 
• The link to submit an EEO-1 report will be posted here as soon as it is available.

More general information on the upcoming requirements can be found in our recent LawFlash: Massachusetts Passes Pay Transparency Law: Considerations for Employers – Publications