Discussion of Wages: Delaware

This Discussion of Wages policy applies to employees in Delaware under Delaware's Equal Pay law (19 Del. C. Chapter 7, Subchapter II), as amended by the Delaware Equal Pay Act, and it protects employees' right to ask about, discuss, or share wage information without retaliation or pressure to waive those rights as a condition of employment. Clear pay discussion rules help your organization support transparency, reduce pay equity risk, and set straightforward expectations for managers and employees while preserving everyone's rights under the National Labor Relations Act.

The History Behind Discussion of Wages Policies in Delaware

Discussion of wages has been protected for decades under federal labor law. Section 7 of the National Labor Relations Act gives most non-supervisory employees the right to talk with each other about pay as "concerted activity," and the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has repeatedly treated pay secrecy rules as unlawful when they chill those conversations. That federal baseline is why many employers stopped trying to enforce blanket "don't discuss pay" rules long before states started passing their own versions.

Delaware added its own layer in 2018 with the Delaware Equal Pay Act, which amended Title 19 to restrict pay secrecy and protect employees who ask about, discuss, or disclose wages. The law also bars retaliation and says employees cannot be required to waive these rights as a condition of employment. That combination pushed employers toward clearer, written guidance, because informal manager expectations and older handbook language could create risk even when nobody intended to police pay talk.

The last decade also brought a practical shift: pay equity audits, salary bands, and job-posting transparency made wage conversations more common, and employees started treating pay information as something they can compare in real time. Delaware's statute and the NLRA both reward consistency, so a straightforward policy became the cleanest way to keep day-to-day practices aligned with the law, especially for multi-state employers that want one playbook that works in Delaware without watering down employee rights.

Which Law is the Discussion of Wages Policy Meant to Comply With?

If you create and distribute a Discussion of Wages Policy for your Delaware-based employees, it's in an effort to comply with Delaware's Wage Payment and Collection Act (19 Del. C. Chapter 7, Subchapter II) and Delaware Equal Pay Act amendments (House Bill 1, 2017-2018).

How to Write a Delaware-Specific Discussion of Wages Policy

• Start with "why" and introduce the concept as a commitment to pay transparency and fairness.
• State that employees may ask about, discuss, and share wage information, including their own pay and others' pay.
• Prohibit retaliation or discrimination for wage discussions or for raising pay concerns, and note these rights cannot be waived as a condition of employment.
• Clarify that the policy does not require anyone to disclose wages.
• Confirm the policy does not limit employees' rights under federal labor law to discuss wages.
• Explain how employees can report concerns if they believe they were treated unfairly for exercising these rights.

When to Include this Policy in Your Employee Handbook

The law does not require you to publish a policy or issue a specific notice. That said, you still have to comply with the requirements that apply to you as an employer. 

Even when notice is not required, this is still the kind of policy most employers should put in their handbook or otherwise publish to employees. It answers a question employees will ask, sets expectations, and gives managers a consistent script. If you don't include it, you'll end up explaining it ad hoc, and that's when inconsistency, resentment, and accidental noncompliance shows up. 

Other Considerations

The law applies to Delaware employers who have at least 1 employee in the US.

Exceptions

None