Session of 1999
         
HOUSE BILL No. 2458
         
By Representatives Barnes, Ballard, Flaharty, Gilbert, Grant, Johnston,
          
Kirk, Klein, Pauls, Ruff, Toelkes and Wells
          
2-10
          
10             AN  ACT concerning employment; prohibiting unfair wage discrim-
11             ination.
12      
13       Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Kansas:
14             Section  1. (a) The term "employ" shall mean to permit to work.
15             (b) The term "employee" shall mean any person employed by an
16       employer and includes all of an employer's permanent employees,
17       whether working full-time or part-time, and any temporary employee
18       employed by an employer for a period of at least three months. "Em-
19       ployee" shall not include any individual employed by the employee's par-
20       ents, spouse or child.
21             (c) The term "employer" shall mean any person who employs three
22       or more persons and includes the state and all political subdivisions
23       thereof.
24             (d) The term "person" shall mean one or more individuals, partner-
25       ships, associations, corporations, limited liability companies, legal repre-
26       sentatives, trustees, trustees in bankruptcy, receivers and the state and all
27       political subdivisions and agencies thereof.
28             (e) The term "labor organization" shall mean any organization that
29       exists for the purpose, in whole or in part, of collective bargaining or of
30       dealing with employers concerning grievances, terms of conditions of em-
31       ployment, or of other mutual aid or protection in connection with
32       employment.
33             (f) The term "market rates" shall mean the rates that employers
34       within a prescribed geographic area actually pay, or are reported to pay
35       for specific jobs, as determined by formal or informal surveys, wage stud-
36       ies, or other means.
37             (g) The term "wages" and wage "rates" shall mean all compensation
38       in any form that an employer provides to employees in payment for work
39       done or services rendered, including but not limited to base pay, bonuses,
40       commissions, awards, tips, or various forms of nonmonetary compensa-
41       tion if provided in lieu of or in addition to monetary compensation and
42       that have economic value to an employee.
43             Sec.  2. (a) It shall be an unlawful employment practice in violation

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  1       of this act for an employer to discriminate between employees on the
  2       basis of sex, race or national origin by:
  3             (1) Paying wages to employees at a rate less than the rate paid to
  4       employees of the opposite sex or of a different race or national origin for
  5       work in equivalent jobs; or
  6             (2) paying wages to employees in a job that is dominated by employ-
  7       ees of a particular sex, race or national origin at a rate less than the rate
  8       at which such employer pays to employees in another job that is domi-
  9       nated by employees of the opposite sex or of a different race or national
10       origin, for work on equivalent jobs.
11             (b) Notwithstanding paragraph (a) above, it shall not be an unlawful
12       employment practice for an employer to pay different wage rates to em-
13       ployees, where such payments are made pursuant to:
14             (1) A bona fide seniority or merit system;
15             (2) a system that measures earnings by quantity or quality of produc-
16       tion; or
17             (3) any bona fide factor other than sex, race or national origin, pro-
18       vided, however, that wage differentials based on varying market rates for
19       equivalent jobs or the differing economic benefits to the employer of
20       equivalent jobs shall not be considered differentials based on bona fide
21       factors other than sex, race or national origin.
22             (c) An employer who is paying wages in violation of this section shall
23       not, in order to comply with the provisions of this section, reduce the
24       wage of any employee.
25             (d) No labor organization or its agents representing employees of an
26       employer having employees subject to any provision of this act shall cause
27       or attempt to cause such an employer to discriminate against an employee
28       in violation of paragraph (a) of this section.
29             (e) The secretary of human resources shall promulgate rules and reg-
30       ulations specifying the criteria for determining whether a job is dominated
31       by employees of a particular sex, race or national origin. Criteria shall
32       include, but not be limited to, factors such as whether the job has ever
33       been formally classified as or traditionally considered to be a "male" or
34       "female" or "white" or "minority" job; whether there is a history of dis-
35       crimination against women and/or people of color with regard to wages,
36       assignment or access to jobs, or other terms and conditions of employ-
37       ment; and the demographic composition of the work force in equivalent
38       jobs. The rules and regulations shall not include a list of jobs.
39             Sec.  3. (a) It shall be an unlawful employment practice in violation
40       of this act for an employer:
41             (1) To take adverse actions or otherwise discriminate against any in-
42       dividual because such individual has opposed any act or practice made
43       unlawful by this act, has sought to enforce rights protected under this act,

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  1       or has testified, assisted, or participated in any manner in an investigation,
  2       hearing or other proceeding to enforce this act; or
  3             (2) to discharge or in any other manner discriminate against, coerce,
  4       intimidate, threaten or interfere with any employee or any other person
  5       because the employee inquired about, disclosed, compared or otherwise
  6       discussed the employee's wages or the wages of any other employee, or
  7       because the employee exercised, enjoyed, aided or encouraged any other
  8       person to exercise or enjoy any right granted or protected by this act.
  9             Sec.  4. (a) Upon commencement of an individual's employment and
10       at least annually thereafter, every employer subject to this act shall pro-
11       vide to each employee a written statement sufficient to inform the em-
12       ployee of the employee's job title, wage rate, and how the wage is cal-
13       culated. This notice shall be supplemented whenever an employee is
14       promoted or reassigned to a different position with the employer, pro-
15       vided, however, that the employer is not required to issue supplemental
16       notifications for temporary reassignments that are no greater than three
17       months in duration.
18             (b) Every employer subject to this act shall make and preserve re-
19       cords that document the wages paid to employees and that document and
20       support the method, system, calculations, and other bases used to estab-
21       lish, adjust and determine the wage rates paid to the employer's employ-
22       ees. Every employer subject to this act shall preserve such records for
23       such periods of time and shall make such reports from the records as
24       shall be prescribed by rules and regulations or order by the secretary of
25       human resources.
26             (c) The rules and regulations promulgated under this act, relating to
27       the form of reports required by paragraph (b), shall provide for protection
28       of the confidentiality of employees, and shall expressly require that re-
29       ports shall not include the names or other identifying information from
30       which readers could discern the identities of employees. The rules and
31       regulations may also identify circumstances that warrant a prohibition on
32       disclosure of reports or information identifying the employer.
33             (d) The secretary of human resources may use the information and
34       data it collects pursuant to paragraph (b) for statistical and research pur-
35       poses, and may compile and publish such studies, analyses, reports and
36       surveys based on the information and data, as secretary of human re-
37       sources may consider appropriate.
38             Sec.  5. (a) The following remedies are available pursuant to this act.
39             (1) In any action in which a court or jury finds that an employer has
40       engaged in acts that violate sections 2, 3 or 4 of this act, the court or jury
41       shall award to any affected employee or employees' monetary relief, in-
42       cluding back pay in an amount equal to the difference between the em-
43       ployees' actual earnings and what the employee would have earned but

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  1       for the employer's unlawful practices; and an additional amount in com-
  2       pensatory and punitive damages, as appropriate;
  3             (2) in any action in which a court or jury finds that an employer has
  4       engaged in acts that violate sections 2, 3 or 4 of this act, the court shall
  5       enjoin the employer from continuing to discriminate against affected em-
  6       ployees and shall direct the employer to comply with the provisions of
  7       this act; and may order the employer to take such additional affirmative
  8       steps as are necessary, including reinstatement or reclassification of af-
  9       fected workers, to ensure an end to unlawful discrimination;
10             (3) in any action in which an affected employee or employees prevail
11       in their claims against employers, the court shall, in addition to any judg-
12       ment awarded to the plaintiffs, allow a reasonable attorney fees, reason-
13       able expert witness fees, and other costs of the action to be paid by the
14       employer.
15             (b) The rights provided under this act shall be enforced in accordance
16       with the provisions of the Kansas acts against discrimination.
17        Sec.  6. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after its
18       publication in the statute book.