By Freelance Contributor
Michigan Chronicle
Michigan workers may soon have stronger protections against hiring practices that can follow people from one paycheck, one credit score, or one financial hardship into their next job opportunity.
The Michigan Senate passed Senate Bill 145 on April 22, legislation sponsored by Sen. Sarah Anthony, D-Lansing, that would prohibit employers from requiring job applicants to disclose past pay, fringe benefits, credit reports, or credit history during the hiring process. The bill would also prevent employers from shutting down wage discussions in the workplace, a protection advocates say is central to workers knowing whether they are being paid fairly. The bill has been referred to the Michigan House Committee on Economic Competitiveness for further consideration.
For workers across Michigan, the measure speaks directly to a labor market where pay inequity continues to shape who gets ahead, who gets stuck, and who is forced to carry past financial hardship into future opportunity.
“Pay inequity makes the already serious affordability crisis even worse, undermining an individual’s ability to cover groceries, put gas in their tank, and keep up with rent,” Anthony said. “By ensuring employers make hiring decisions based on the things that matter — the skills, talent, and experience someone brings to the table as opposed to their personal financial background — we will set up Michigan workers to access the opportunities and pay they deserve.”
The bill would amend Michigan’s Payment of Wages and Fringe Benefits Act by limiting how employers can use a potential employee’s compensation history or credit information. Supporters argue that salary history questions can lock workers into lower pay, especially when a person has already been underpaid in a previous job. Credit checks can create another barrier, particularly for applicants who may have experienced debt, medical bills, unemployment, housing instability, or other financial strain unrelated to their ability to do the work.
The issue carries particular weight for women and Black women, who continue to face wide pay gaps in Michigan. The Michigan League for Public Policy reported that Michigan women earn 79 cents for every dollar earned by men, while Black women earn 67 cents compared to white male workers.
“Michigan women earn 79 cents for every dollar earned by men — and for Black women, that drops to 67 cents compared to white male peers. Using salary history to determine pay is part of what leads to that gap, and it stifles individual women’s ability to advance in their careers and receive fair bonuses and benefits,” said Monique Stanton, president and CEO of the Michigan League for Public Policy. “We’re grateful to Sen. Sarah Anthony and all those who worked to pass Senate Bill 145. It’s a commonsense tool that makes wages fairer, which has been shown in the 18 other states that have already implemented this type of salary history ban. We urge the Michigan House to do their part next and deliver this win for Michigan workers.”
The policy debate goes beyond paperwork. For many workers, a salary history question can become a quiet ceiling. A worker who was underpaid at a previous job can be offered a new salary based on that old number instead of the value of the current role. A credit check can cause an applicant to be judged by debt or financial hardship before they ever get a chance to explain their qualifications. Those practices can weigh heavily on communities already dealing with racial wealth gaps, housing costs, inflation, student loan debt, and uneven access to higher-paying jobs.
Supporters of the bill say employment decisions should be based on qualifications, experience, training, and ability. They argue that past pay and credit history often reveal more about structural inequity than individual merit.
“The passage of Senate Bill 145 is another hard-fought victory for workers across our great state,” said Ron Bieber, president of the Michigan AFL-CIO. “Everything is more expensive, jobs are drying up, and the last thing workers need are employers perpetuating low pay for people struggling to make it. Thank you to Sen. Sarah Anthony for leading the charge on this critical legislation. Now it goes to the Michigan House, and we urge lawmakers to vote YES.”
The measure arrives as national pay equity efforts continue to focus on transparency and worker protections. Several states have already restricted salary history inquiries, and civil rights groups and labor economists have long argued that banning the practice can help reduce discrimination in hiring and compensation. Senate Bill 145 was introduced in previous legislative sessions and reflects recommendations connected to broader pay equity movements.
For Michigan, the bill raises a clear question about what workers should have to disclose to earn a fair shot. Should a woman who was paid less in a prior position have that number used against her in the next one? Should a worker recovering from financial hardship lose access to employment because of a credit history that may have no connection to the job? Should employees be discouraged from discussing wages when pay secrecy has helped wage gaps remain hidden?
Anthony’s legislation attempts to answer those questions through state law.
The bill would not guarantee equal pay by itself. It would not erase long-standing racial and gender wage disparities overnight. It would, however, remove common hiring practices that advocates say can quietly reproduce inequity before a worker ever receives an offer letter.
For Black workers, women, single parents, caregivers, and low-wage workers trying to move into better-paying jobs, that distinction matters. Michigan’s affordability crisis has made every dollar more consequential. Rent, groceries, transportation, child care, utilities, and medical costs have stretched household budgets across the state. A lower starting wage can shape years of earnings, benefits, bonuses, retirement contributions, and economic mobility.
That is why supporters are framing Senate Bill 145 as a worker protection and a pay equity tool. It centers the simple idea that applicants should be considered for what they can do, not what they were previously paid or what their financial record says about a difficult season in their life.
The legislation now heads to the Michigan House, where lawmakers will decide whether the state moves closer to joining other states that have limited salary history and credit history inquiries in employment decisions. For workers across Michigan, the outcome could determine whether past inequity remains a factor in future opportunity.
