California Pay Transparency Law: What a Job Posting Must Include
California Labor Code § 432.3(c)(3) requires an employer with 15 or more employees to include the pay scale for a position in any job posting.
The Labor Commissioner may order a civil penalty of $100 to $10,000 per violation, set on the totality of the circumstances including prior violations.
What the law says
An employer with 15 or more employees shall include the pay scale for a position in any job posting (Cal. Lab. Code § 432.3(c)(3)).
Source: https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?sectionNum=432.3.&lawCode=LAB
Last verified 2026-10-16
Penalties
The Labor Commissioner may order a civil penalty of $100 to $10,000 per violation, set on the totality of the circumstances, including prior violations. For a first violation, no penalty is assessed if the employer shows that all job postings for open positions have been updated to include the pay scale (Cal. Lab. Code § 432.3(d)(4)).
Good to know
- For a first violation, no penalty is assessed if the employer shows that all job postings for open positions have been updated to include the pay scale.
- Prior violations count when the Labor Commissioner sets the amount.
What a posting can look like
Pay scale: $60,000–$78,000 per year. Location: San Francisco, CA.
An illustration of the required items, not legal wording.
Check a California posting
Questions
Employers with 15 or more employees (Cal. Lab. Code § 432.3(c)(3)).
A civil penalty of $100 to $10,000 per violation, set on the totality of the circumstances; for a first violation no penalty is assessed if the employer shows all postings for open positions now include the pay scale (§ 432.3(d)(4)).
The quoted text is the law. The explanations around it are our plain-language summary, not legal advice. We re-check each source regularly and show the date we last verified it.