Are Pay Transparency Laws Working?

Bossed Up

Pay transparency is one of our policy priorities at Bossed Up, and in this episode, I speak with a scholar who studies the subject: Zoë Cullen. An assistant professor of entrepreneurial management at Harvard Business School, Zoë has spent the last decade studying gender gaps within the workforce, and most recently has focused on the effects of pay transparency laws.

Her research reveals a lot of interesting information about what pay transparency means for individual workers, career motivation, and hiring practices. Zoë’s practical explanations of the data help put this groundbreaking policy into perspective.

Find out what the numbers say about how pay transparency is playing out in the real world:

• Which information frictions and taboos stand in the way;
• The surprising effect of learning what your boss makes;
• How pay transparency affects powerhouse negotiators in the workplace;
• And even the potential downsides to pay transparency for worker’s wages.

Related Links:

• Connect with Zoë - https://zcullen.github.io/
• Read Zoë’s article, “Is Pay Transparency Good?” - https://zcullen.github.io/assets/docs/JEP%20Is%20Pay%20Transparency%20Good.pdf
• Read Zoë’s article, “Equilibrium Effects Of Pay Transparency” - https://www.nber.org/system/files/working_papers/w28903/w28903.pdf
• Equal Pay for Equal Work Act - https://leg.colorado.gov/bills/sb19-085
• Episode 319, “How To Talk Money With Your Friends and Family and Why It’s Critically Important That You Do” - https://www.bossedup.org/podcast/episode319
• Episode 146 “Step-By-Step Negotiation Prep” https://www.bossedup.org/podcast/episode146
• Salary Insights Guide - https://www.bossedup.org/negotiation#salaryinsights
• Bossed Up Courage Community - https://www.facebook.com/groups/927776673968737/
• Bossed Up LinkedIn Group - https://www.linkedin.com/groups/7071888/