What a difference three years makes. Since Aug. 2020, the share of job postings on Indeed that include wage or salary information has doubled to 50%, according to new data from the job site.

Pay data has become more widely available as states and localities have passed legislation requiring employers to include estimated salary ranges for open positions at their companies. Since Colorado first enacted a pay transparency law in 2021, six other states have followed suit, as well as jurisdictions including New York City, Jersey City, New Jersey, and Cincinnati, Ohio. New York State’s pay transparency law took effect Sept. 17.

As a result of this new wave of legislation, job-seekers across the country have access to more data on salary potential at companies than they did previously. The fact that one-half of US job postings now include salary information suggests the practice is beneficial not only for job-seekers, but also for companies’ recruiting efforts, Cory Stahle, an economist at Indeed Hiring Lab, told HR Brew.

The states where pay data is most widely available. The US metro areas that saw the most significant uptick in job postings with salary information from August 2022 to 2023 were all in states with pay transparency laws.

Keep reading here.—CV

As you budget for end-of-year employee gifting, consider this: Choosing the right gifts can boost engagement and motivation for 3 months or more. Good news, right?

Here’s the not-so-good news. About one-third of employees have received a gift that made them feel distinctly unappreciated. So Tremendous created a report to help your business succeed this gift-giving season.

The findings are based on surveys of 1,500 employees across 10 industries, and here’s a tip straight from the report: Go easy on the company swag. About 60% of HR professionals send swag as a holiday gift, but only 2% of employees actually want that swag.

So what do your employees want? Read the report to find out.

As Google seeks to get more workers back in the office, it’s adding one more carrot to entice them: Starting next year, the company will expand its suite of onsite wellness centers so that more employees can access healthcare services in the same location where they work.

Google launched its first wellness center in 2010 at its Mountain View headquarters in Silicon Valley, and has since opened additional sites at offices in New York City, Cambridge, Massachusetts, and Seattle/Kirkland, according to Ryan Lamont, a spokesperson for the company. Tens of thousands of employees have taken advantage of on-campus health services, such as flu shots and annual checkups, since the centers first launched, Lamont told HR Brew via email.

In 2024, Google plans to open new wellness centers in Austin, Boulder, and Chicago. It will also expand the suite of services it offers to include dermatology and gynecology, as well as onsite pharmacies.

Zoom out. Google’s plan to expand its wellness centers comes as more employers are seeing higher health costs due to inflation, labor shortages in the healthcare sector, and the rising popularity of expensive new drugs such as GLP-1s for weight loss.

Keep reading here.—CV

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) is seeking to add provisions for LGBTQ+ workers to its workplace harassment guidance, according to proposed updates released this week. Here’s what the changes could mean for HR. Plus, news on a move to raise wages for fast-food workers in California.

EEOC proposes updated guidance on workplace harassment. The EEOC released proposed updates to its guidance on workplace harassment on Oct. 2. The guidance, which is currently open to the public for comment, hasn’t been updated since 1999. Although the agency previously proposed updates in 2017, they were never finalized by the Trump administration due to “internal disagreements” about LGBTQ+ workers, reported Bloomberg Law. The EEOC cited changes in law, the #MeToo movement, and emerging issues like virtual and online harassment as animating factors behind the proposed changes to the guidance.

The proposed guidance specifies that LGBTQ+ workers are entitled to harassment protections, in light of the Supreme Court’s 2020 decision in Bostock v. Clayton County.

Keep reading here.—CV

Today’s top HR reads.

Stat: Private US companies added 89,000 jobs in September, the lowest since the start of 2021, according to ADP. (Bloomberg)

Quote: “It’s not for everybody…It requires a constant evaluation of your own behaviors and your organization’s behaviors to move faster.”—Natalie Breece, chief people officer of clothing resale platform ThredUp, on the four-day workweek (the Wall Street Journal)

Read: Some 75,000 unionized workers with health system Kaiser Permanente are on strike, citing concerns about wages and staffing. (Associated Press)

Won’t you stay?: Find out how companies are partnering with CareerBuilder to retain top talent—and get a sneak peek into the current state of hiring. Download the report.*

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