Is it legal for employers to make you sign a contract that prohibits disclosing your wage to coworkers?

I signed a contract from my employers that said it was a terminable offense to disclose my wage to my coworkers. I heard in a class that the law prohibits employers from doing this but i can't find that information anywhere. I want to find the exact law before i confront my boss. Some of my coworkers make more than me even though it is the same job. It is not based on merit or seniority. I would appreciate any information that would lead me in the right direction.

michr

the contract is an employee-employer issue and generally not covered by law. if you sign it it generally is binding there are some issues that can be challenged but not many. generally the only issues that are challengable in a contract are those which violate specific laws of the state in question.

there are laws in some states that make the practice you speak of illegal for those who don't have a contract(where it is simply a policy statement).
even in that case you can be terminated for violating the policy but you would qualify for unemployment benefits. termination for discussing your wages is not just cause in regards to limiting benefits in those states that have this type of law.

rwa000

company policy prevails, if they tell you not to do don't do it, there is no law that covers this, its the same as signing a paper that states if you smoke in the building you will be fired

mass

If you are a non union employee you have no rights except for the statutory rights for an employee.
You can be enforced to keep the secret of your wages.
This is global economy man. If it is an atwill job. you have to fight a lone battle.
Be prepared

Bandit

If you haven't told anyone your salary, then it's not a problem if someone told you theirs. Find another job, tell these guys to shove it.

john c

The reason you cannot find it anywhere is because it's simply isn't true. Even if you could, I would not recommend telling your superiors that you have a legal right to gossip at, and about, the company. What you signed is not a contract. It was a written acknowledgment of the most pervasive and tacitly enforced "understanding" in the business world. Now, rather than the remote possibility of losing an unemployment appeal because you were creating dissent within the company, they have a signature that will avoid it altogether.

Actually, there is no such thing as an "at will" state and this even applies to most "contract" terminations. Just like the name says, the stewards are there to represent the "union" of employees and very seldom become involved in extreme cases such as this.The overwhelming majority of jobs are informal agreements and the reason for dismissal in most cases is "It just isn't working out." They don't even need a reason unless the unemployment is appealed and most of those decisions favor the employer.

As Samuel Goldwyn said: " A verbal contract isn't worth the paper it's written on." Unless you really dislike where you are, I would suggest waiting for a much more substantial issue before sticking your head out of the barrel. Good Luck.

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