{"id":123091,"date":"2026-07-17T10:30:00","date_gmt":"2026-07-17T09:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/uk\/?p=123091"},"modified":"2026-07-17T10:25:04","modified_gmt":"2026-07-17T09:25:04","slug":"new-salary-law-change-millions-apply-jobs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/uk\/new-salary-law-change-millions-apply-jobs\/","title":{"rendered":"New Salary Law Could Change How Millions Apply for Jobs"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The proposals would apply across England, Wales and Scotland if adopted following consultation. According to the Cabinet Office, the changes are designed to improve fairness during recruitment by reducing information gaps between employers and candidates.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The draft plans form part of a broader review of anti-discrimination legislation and remain subject to consultation with employers and industry groups. Officials are still considering the precise requirements that businesses would need to meet before the new rules are introduced.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Government Proposes Mandatory Pay Transparency during Recruitment<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Under the proposals, employers advertising vacancies would be required to include salary information<\/strong> in every job advert. Where a role is not advertised publicly, employers would instead have to provide written salary <\/a>details to candidates before any interview takes place.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to the Cabinet Office, greater transparency at the recruitment stage could encourage employers to assess and define pay more consistently before hiring begins. The government argues this approach could reduce disputes arising from unclear pay structures while allowing applicants to make informed decisions about whether to pursue a vacancy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The consultation will determine exactly what employers must disclose. Officials are considering whether businesses should publish a precise salary<\/strong>, a salary range<\/strong> or a benchmark <\/strong>rate for each role. They are also seeking views on whether information beyond base salary, including bonuses, should be included as part of the disclosure requirements.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The government said the final details would be introduced through delegated powers, allowing regulations to specify the exact obligations placed on employers after the consultation concludes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
HR manager reading a candidate’s CV as new rules propose mandatory salary details in all job adverts \u00a9 Shutterstock<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Ministers Say Transparency Could Help Reduce Unequal Pay Outcomes<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The Cabinet Office argues that recruitment processes often involve an imbalance of information because employers know the intended pay for a role while applicants do not. According to the policy document, this disparity can contribute to discriminatory pay practices <\/strong>and unequal outcomes when salaries are negotiated.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The document states that making salary information available from the outset could help candidates navigate the labour market more effectively while also benefiting employers by reducing applications from candidates whose salary expectations differ significantly from the advertised pay.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Equalities Minister Seema Malhotra<\/a> and Social Security and Disability Minister Sir Stephen Timms said greater pay transparency could encourage employers to evaluate job roles before recruitment begins, leading to greater consistency when setting pay. They added that clearer salary information could reduce disputes linked to opaque pay structures<\/strong> and address information disparities that may contribute to discriminatory outcomes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The proposals also reflect similar developments elsewhere. According to the BBC, the plans echo pay transparency measures being introduced across the European Union, where large employers with more than 100 workers will be required to disclose the initial salary or salary range for new roles either in job advertisements or before interviews. Unlike the EU measures, however, the Cabinet Office consultation does not include proposals to prohibit employers from asking candidates about their salary history.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The consultation on the proposed legislation will run until October<\/strong>, after which the government intends to set out the final legislative requirements applying across England, Wales and Scotland.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The UK government has proposed new legislation that would require employers to publish salary information when advertising jobs, as part of wider plans to strengthen anti-discrimination laws. The measures are intended to give jobseekers greater transparency before they apply and to encourage more consistent pay practices.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":123094,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[27],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-123091","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-employment","generate-columns","tablet-grid-50","mobile-grid-100","grid-parent","grid-33","no-featured-image-padding"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/123091","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=123091"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/123091\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":123095,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/123091\/revisions\/123095"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/123094"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=123091"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=123091"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=123091"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}