Missouri Pay Equity
Statute
Classes protected
- Sex, race, color, religion, national origin, ancestry, age, disability
Key language on pay discrimination
- “[N]o employer shall pay any female in his employ at wage rates less than the wage rates paid to male employees in the same establishment for the same quantity and quality of the same classification of work[.]”
- "Unlawful for public employers and private employers with 6 or more employees to discriminate against any individual with respect to compensation on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, ancestry, age, or disability (does not apply to corporations and associations owned and operated by religious or sectarian groups"
Exceptions for pay disparities (including affirmative defenses)
- Seniority
- Length of service
- Ability
- Skill
- Difference in duties or services performed
- Difference in shift or time of day work
- Difference in hours of work
- Restrictions or prohibitions on lifting or moving objects in excess of specified weight
- Other reasonable differentiation
- Factors other than sex
Prohibition on salary history inquiry
- Employers in Kansas City are prohibited from
- (i) inquiring about an applicant's salary history;
- (ii) screening applicants based on their current or prior wages, benefits, or other compensation, or salary histories, including requiring that an applicant's prior wages, benefits, other compensation or salary history satisfy minimum or maximum criteria;
- (iii) relying on an applicant's salary history in deciding whether to offer employment to an applicant, or in determining the salary, benefits, or other compensation for such applicant during the hiring process, including the negotiation of an employment contract; or
- (iv) refusing to hire or otherwise disfavoring, injuring, or retaliating against an applicant for not disclosing his/her salary history to an employer.
- St. Louis prohibits city agencies from inquiring about an applicant’s salary history or refusing to hire, or otherwise retaliating against, applicants for refusing to disclose salary history.
Learn more about our services and team.
View our related Pay Equity Insights for Missouri