Pay Transparency in the Workplace: How HR Leaders Can Build Trust, Close Wage Gaps, and Stay Compliant
Episode 21
Pay transparency is no longer a nice-to-have—it’s a must for today’s workplaces.
In Episode 21 of the People Success Circle podcast, host Mindy East shares why pay transparency in the workplace matters now more than ever, especially for HR leaders and business owners.
From tackling hidden wage gaps to aligning with new salary transparency laws, this episode offers clear, practical guidance on building trust, improving retention, and creating fair compensation strategies.
Whether you're navigating state requirements or simply want to foster a more equitable culture, listen in or keep reading for key insights and actionable steps.
In Episode 21 of The People Success Circle, I share my personal story of discovering a significant pay gap early in my career, how it fueled my passion for pay equity, and I share practical tips and takeaways to help you build a fair, high-performing workplace.
Why pay transparency in the workplace builds trust, supports retention, and empowers employees to grow.
The current landscape of salary transparency laws across the U.S., including upcoming changes and what employers need to know.
How to create a strong compensation philosophy and use it to guide fair, consistent salary ranges.
A step-by-step approach to building and implementing compensation guidelines that reduce bias and support performance.
Tips for having productive pay conversations with employees and rolling out salary bands internally—before external job postings.
Advice for both employers and job seekers on how to navigate pay discussions with confidence and clarity.
🎧 Tune in to learn how to build an equitable workplace.
🔗 Helpful Links
🌐 Mindy’s website for business consulting: https://www.limerockcareerco.com
🎧 Listen to the podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts
Episode 21: Watch or Listen
Key Takeaways From Episode 21
Pay Transparency Builds Trust and Reduces Inequity
When employees understand how pay is determined—and what their growth potential looks like—it builds trust and engagement. Pay transparency in the workplace doesn’t mean sharing everyone’s salaries. It means being clear about pay bands, compensation philosophy, and what it takes to earn more. That clarity reduces bias, supports equity, and empowers people to plan their careers confidently.
A Strong Compensation Philosophy Comes First
Before rolling out any pay guidelines, I always work with organizations to define a clear compensation philosophy. This is your foundation. It explains how you benchmark roles, how performance impacts pay, and how you ensure fairness. It’s also your internal promise to employees about how compensation decisions are made.
Research and Equity Audits Are Non-Negotiable
Creating fair pay ranges means doing the research. I recommend using industry-specific salary surveys to define minimum, midpoint, and maximum salaries for each role. Once those are in place, conduct an equity audit to identify and correct any unexplained pay gaps by gender, race, tenure, or performance.
Internal Communication Comes Before Public Job Postings
Too often, companies publish salary ranges on job listings before they’ve told their own people what those roles pay. That’s a big mistake. Rolling out compensation guidelines internally—along with tools, manager training, and thoughtful communication—ensures your team feels respected and informed.
Pay Transparency Improves Financial Well-Being and Engagement
Gallup identifies financial well-being as one of five key pillars of overall employee well-being. When people understand their total compensation and see clear paths for earning more, they’re less stressed and more engaged. That’s a win for your team and your bottom line.
People First, Profits Follow
If you’re struggling to get leadership buy-in, here’s what I remind my clients: when the people side of the business isn’t working, everything suffers. Sales, service, retention, culture—it’s all connected. When you invest in your people, you build the foundation for long-term success. And it all starts with seeing what’s really going on behind the curtain.
🎧 Want the full story, examples, and action steps?
Listen to the full episode of The People Success Circle for more insights on building a thriving culture that drives results.
Read the full transcript
Mindy:
Welcome back to The People Success Circle podcast, where we talk about what it really takes for people and organizations to thrive. This week's topic is a hot one, and it's one that makes people really uncomfortable. We're going to talk about pay transparency—what happens when we do talk about compensation, and what happens when we don't? When we don't even know?
Today we're digging into a tough but essential topic: pay transparency. What happens when we don't talk about compensation and what happens when we do? And how do we even fix the hidden gaps that we often don't even know exist?
I'm going to start off by telling you about my personal story with pay transparency.
Back early in my career, this was in the early 1990s, I was working for a big company—but on a startup project within that company. I had a position that was called an assistant manager, and I was one of many assistant managers. They had hired a lot of us because they anticipated growing, and so we had a pretty big training cohort.
One day, I was sitting at breakfast with three male assistant managers. The four of us were just having a great conversation—we got along great. We were talking about when they were going to open new locations, and what our careers and training looked like. All of a sudden, one of the men said something about having a hard time living off the salary he was making. The other guys nodded and said, “Yeah, this is a really low amount. I took a pay cut because I believed in this opportunity.”
When they said what they were making—just very openly—I froze. Because I was making 31% less than the three men at the table who were doing the exact same job I was. And I was barely making ends meet. I had a college degree. I had great intern experience. And even though it was my first real job, I had as much experience as the three men sitting at that breakfast table.
We were at Denny’s, and everything was great—until the conversation turned to pay. And I stopped and said, “Wait a minute. You guys make that?” They were like, “Yeah, isn't it kind of stink? We all kind of took a pay cut.” And I said, “My goodness, I make so much less than you.” And they were like, “You need to go ask for more. That’s really not fair.”
So I did. I slept on it—I was so stressed, and really hurt. Because I was doing a great job. I was easily doing as great of a job as the three men at the table.
I thought about it for a few days. I called my mentor and talked to her, and she coached me on how to have the conversation. Well, this was quite a while ago. And when I had the conversation with the male HR director, he said, “They’re the breadwinners.” And I said, “They’re not married with kids or anything yet.” And he said, “Yes, but men are typically the breadwinners. So when I set pay, that’s what I think about.”
My jaw dropped to the floor. But I didn’t know what to do. And so he said, “I’m sorry, Mindy. I’m not going to be able to raise your rate. If you want to make more, you’re going to have to work really hard to get promoted.”
So I had a decision to make. I knew that this felt miserable. But I also knew that I liked the company, I liked the job, and I saw growth potential. So I made the decision to stay. And to make a long story short, I actually did end up getting promoted several times and surpassed those three men at the table—both in seniority and I’m sure eventually in pay as well. I had a great career with that company.
But that soured my taste on equity—and what it means to have pay discrepancies in the workplace. I was a victim of it myself. Then I went into human resources and became passionate about making sure that did not happen to other women, minorities, or people who truly deserved equal pay. Everybody deserves equal pay.
That moment actually lit a fire in me. It helped me see that lack of pay transparency leads to inequity—and that it's not always intentional. Sometimes people just don’t ask, and sometimes leaders just don’t tell. But the result is the same: people being undervalued without even knowing they have the potential to make more.
Transparency builds trust and it empowers people to speak up. Without it, we rely on luck—accidentally overhearing it at the Denny’s breakfast table with your peers. We know that companies that lead with pay clarity are more likely to close wage gaps, reduce turnover, and attract stronger, more loyal talent.
So let’s talk about it. Let’s dive in.
I want to give you a few more reasons why pay transparency matters in the United States. Like I said, it fosters trust and equity. It also helps us break down bias. Currently in 2025, women in the U.S. earn 84% of what men earn. Black and Hispanic workers earn even less—76 cents and 73 cents on the dollar, respectively. These pay gaps continue to persist.
A third of companies report losing talent due to unfair pay. And there are laws emerging all the time. Today, 14 states and the District of Columbia have pay transparency laws in place. In 2025, four more states will be added—bringing us to 18 states plus D.C. requiring salary range disclosure.
In addition, 10 more states have legislation in review. Federally, 22 states have banned employers from asking about someone’s salary history, because we know that setting pay based on salary history perpetuates inequity.
We also have the Paycheck Fairness Act, instituted in March 2025, which strengthens pay equity protections. So we’ve got legislation working in our favor—but now I want to talk about why employers need to take this seriously to improve their workplaces.
One of the main reasons pay transparency is so important is that it improves financial well-being. According to Gallup, financial well-being is one of five pillars of overall employee well-being. Companies can contribute by clearly talking about total compensation, having salary bands, and sharing what growth looks like in each role. Just knowing that information gives people peace of mind and reduces distraction at work.
So how does a company start implementing pay transparency? If it’s required by law, they have to. But there's a way to do it that’s productive and helpful. The first thing I do with any company is define and publish a compensation philosophy.
This means being clear about how pay aligns with national, state, and local benchmarks; how performance impacts pay; and what the expectations are for every role. That way, people know what to strive for during performance reviews and promotions.
Next, we create actual pay ranges. This involves buying salary surveys for the industry and comparing pay by job title, company size, revenue, and location. For each role, we define minimum, midpoint, and maximum pay levels—and we decide where in that range we want our employees to fall based on the company’s compensation philosophy.
I recommend updating this data annually or every two years at most to stay aligned with market changes.
Once we’ve defined pay guidelines, we look at where each employee falls in the band. We check for equity—by gender, race, tenure, and performance—and fix any unexplained gaps. It’s important to do this before publishing anything so that employees aren’t surprised or confused.
We also equip managers with training, talking points, and tools to explain compensation and expectations clearly. Communication is key. Please, tell your current employees before you post salary ranges on job listings. You don’t want them to find out their role’s value from the internet before hearing it internally.
I also strongly recommend sharing total compensation—not just salary. Employees often don’t realize how much a company contributes through benefits, retirement, paid time off, and more. It’s a great time to talk about all of that.
Let me clarify: pay transparency does not mean sharing what each individual earns. It means sharing pay bands and empowering people to talk about compensation openly. In many states, you can no longer prohibit employees from discussing their pay.
And interestingly, when companies implement pay transparency, it often reduces internal chatter. People stop speculating and instead focus on clear conversations with their managers about how to grow and earn more.
For employers who are hesitant, I always bring it back to the why: pay transparency bridges gaps, builds trust, and gives employees a roadmap to advancement. It’s one of the best ways to become a truly great place to work.
Now, if you’re listening as a job seeker or employee, here’s what I want you to know: You can ask about pay ranges—whether you’re applying or already in a role. You also have every right to ask about expectations and performance metrics so you know how to grow in your position.
Use tools like salary.com and glassdoor.com to understand market value. If your state doesn’t require salary disclosures, check for the same job title posted in a state that does—like Denver, Colorado. That can give you a good benchmark.
And when you're asked for salary expectations, come prepared. Do your research based on your city’s cost of living, your experience, and your industry.
If this podcast sparked an interest in learning more about setting pay guidelines, remember: this is about fairness. Fair hiring, fair promotions, fair raises—for all genders and backgrounds.
I also encourage you to research your state’s laws. Whether or not you're ready, you may be required to roll out pay transparency—so do it well, with the right tools, guidance, and internal communication.
Let’s wrap up with a few action steps. If you’re a leader, HR professional, or business owner, start by reviewing your state’s laws and asking whether your company is ready to address compensation transparency. If you need help, reach out. I have years of experience helping companies build fair, effective pay strategies.
And if you’re an employee or job seeker, ask about salary ranges, understand total compensation, and know your worth.
Finally, please share this episode and leave a review if you learned something new. It helps get this important information into the hands of people who make pay decisions—and that’s how we move toward equity together.
That Denny’s table conversation showed me that without open dialogue, inequity hides. Transparency isn’t just about compliance—it’s about equity, trust, and empowerment. Let’s keep the conversation going.
Thanks for listening, and I’ll see you next time on The People Success Circle.
