Employers can ask what you made at the last job, but...

APhiladelphia ban on employers asking about job candidates’ pay history was struck down by a federal judge last week. But it wasn’t a complete loss for those who believe that wage gaps for women and minorities will continue to exist as long as employers are able to set a worker’s new salary based on what that individual earned in past jobs.

“We’re obviously disappointed with the ruling ... but glad the court upheld the ban on reliance on prior pay,” said Terry Fromson, managing attorney of the Women’s Law Project in Philadelphia. “We will continue to advocate for and support legislation that will strengthen equal pay protections to close the gender wage gap, which has essentially stalled.”

The judge in the lawsuit filed by the Chamber of Commerce for Greater Philadelphia against the City of Philadelphia agreed that even if an employer collects the information, it can’t be used to pay new hires less than others with similar work histories and responsibilities.

While the Philadelphia ban, which would have applied to public and private employers, was defeated, a ban that stops all hiring managers for the city of Pittsburgh from asking about job candidates’ pay history has been in effect since January 2017.

The governments — state and local — that have imposed such bans are trying to do away with systemic pay disparities.

A ban in Massachusetts, which goes into effect July 1, prohibits organizations from seeking information about a person’s past pay. However, employers may confirm salary information if it is voluntarily offered by the applicant, and after an offer of employment with compensation has been made.

In New York, companies cannot ask about past salary nor base wages on pay history unless the applicant reveals the information willingly. The statute applies to all employers, even those with just one employee.

“People are trying to get away from pay disparities that existed in prior jobs. One way to do that is to prevent employers from asking what salary they made in prior jobs during the recruiting process,” said Joseph Quinn, a lawyer at the Cozen O’Conner law firm, Downtown, who specializes in labor and employment law.

Working women, on average, are paid less than white male workers. White men also out-earn black and Hispanic men.

The 2015 U.S. Census Bureau reported women earned 80 cents for every dollar a man earns and African-American women earn about 69 cents for every dollar a man earns. The gap was largest for Hispanic women, who were paid only 54 cents of what white men were paid. Asian women’s salaries showed the smallest gender pay gap at 87 percent of white men’s earnings.

Black men earned just 75 percent as much as white men in 2015. However, Asian men earned 117 percent as much, according to a 2016 study by Pew Research Center in Washington, D.C.

Companies have traditionally relied on past salaries as a yardstick for gauging the minimum they could pay a job candidate. People who earned more than what the company budgeted for a position could be ruled out quickly. People who made less could be hired at a bargain and still be happy about getting a wage increase.

Andrew Sassaman, branch manager of Robert Half staffing agency in Pittsburgh, said instead of using a candidate’s current salary to determine what to pay for a particular position, employers need to have a pay range established before they start the hiring process.

“Regardless of the new legislation, salary history isn’t a relevant factor in determining pay range in the first place,” he said. “The range should be based on the skill set and experience required and what the market demands.”

In fact, he said, communicating the pay range in advance to job seekers can enhance the hiring process.

“It can eliminate applicants who aren’t satisfied with what the employer is offering,” Mr. Sassaman said.

“And, if employers are struggling to attract suitable applicants, this can provide early clues that the pay range isn’t realistic.”