Title: Certified Nursing assisatant
I work at Keck USC and we have Union. Why some employee less experienced than me have more pay? Its that legal
Hi Zaldy,
Thank you for your question. In general, it is legal to pay people at different rates, even if it seems unfair. So, for example, a person who has less experience might be paid more than someone who has more experience. There is normally nothing illegal about that.
In fact, there are often many factors that go into setting a person’s wages that are unrelated to experience. Perhaps the employee was skillful in negotiating their wages. Or maybe they went to a good school. Or maybe they performed particularly well on a relevant test or interview. There could also be other legitimate business reasons that justify the disparity in wages.
Employers cross the line, however, when their wage or hiring decisions are motivated by discriminatory or unlawful reasons. For example, if the employer adopts policies that discriminate against employees based on race, religion, sexual orientation, age (if the employee is over 40), or some other protected reason, then the employer would be breaking the law.
I hope this answers your question. If you would like to learn more about discrimination law in California, please review our article: Discrimination Laws in the California Workplace. We also have an article on age discrimination, which you can find here: Age Discrimination Laws in the California Workplace.
Please remember that this information does not constitute legal advice and should not be relied on. Nor does it create an attorney-client relationship.
I wish you the best of luck in your situation!