AFL-CIO’s Lynn Rhinehart, Time, February 18, 2016, writes that over 50 percent of males and females taking a 2014 survey said their employers had policies prohibiting or discouraging talk about pay at work. These policies make it difficult for workers to address inequities in salaries. Rhinehart argues that the National Labor Relations Act of 1935 already protects private-sector workers who discuss pay and other issues with colleagues.
The Obama administration announced last month two executive actions to force companies with 100 or more employees to report their pay packages in regards to race, gender and ethnicity. (The Atlantic, January 29, 2016, by Bourree Lam)