SB 1668 - Arizona Equal Pay Act

• Prohibits employers from requiring employees to keep wages secret, from taking adverse action against employees for discussing wages, and from retaliating against employees asserting wage disclosure rights.

• Bars employers from considering or seeking a prospective employee's wage history when making hiring or compensation decisions, with limited exceptions; violators face civil penalties of $5,000 for first offense and up to $10,000 total, plus special damages up to $10,000 and attorney fees.

• Strengthens equal pay protections by requiring substantially similar work to receive equal pay unless employer demonstrates wage differences are based on seniority, merit, production systems, or bona fide factors other than sex; expands statute of limitations to two years (three years for willful violations).

• Establishes equal pay certification program for businesses with 40+ full-time employees and requires certified equal pay status for state contracts exceeding $500,000 beginning January 1, 2024.

• Creates flexible scheduling rights allowing employees to request changes to hours, times, location, or schedule notice; employers must engage in good faith interactive process and grant requests for serious health conditions, caregiving responsibilities, or educational enrollment unless bona fide business reason exists.

• Requires retail, food service, and cleaning employers to provide four-hour pay minimums for reporting work, 14-day schedule advance notice, and one hour additional pay for last-minute schedule changes or split shifts.