Employee Compensation

Q: I noticed the League’s model employment application doesn’t ask for prior salary history. Why?

LMC: The model employment application created by the League of Minnesota Cities includes best practices and ensures compliance with all applicable hiring laws. It does not request an applicant’s prior wage information, in order to voluntarily promote greater pay transparency.

While under federal law employers are free to ask candidates about their past salaries, increasingly many states are adopting laws banning employers from requesting applicant salary history information. These bans range from a complete prohibition on seeking a candidate’s pay history, to some states allowing an employer to seek salary history information after making a conditional offer of employment with a specified salary. Salary history bans are aimed at promoting greater wage transparency and avoiding perpetuating pay inequalities. Many employers in states with wage history bans find posting a salary range in a job ad both promotes pay transparency and allows an applicant to self-select whether the pay range meets their needs.

In Minnesota, during the 2023 legislative session, a bill was introduced to ban employers from requesting applicant pay history. If Minnesota law changes with respect to seeking a prospective employee’s pay history, we will advise our members promptly. Download a copy of the League’s model employment application at lmc.org/employmentapp.

Answered by Assistant Human Resources Director Joyce Hottinger: [email protected].

Public Notices

Q: What method should be used for counting days/dates as they relate to posting notices or other required actions?

LMC: Various statutes define the counting of time for this purpose. Minnesota Statutes, sections 331A.08 and 645.15 direct that the first day of posting or publication should not be counted. The day on which the act or event will occur should generally be included, unless that day is a Sunday or a legal holiday, in which case the next secular day will be considered the last day.

For example, if a city council will be holding a special meeting, it must give at least three days public notice (Minnesota Statutes, section 13D.04). If the notice is first posted on a Monday, this day would not be counted as one of the three days. Tuesday would be the first day of notice, Wednesday would be the second day of notice, and Thursday would be the third day of notice. Thursday would be the soonest the council could hold the special meeting, since the day on which the meeting would occur would be included when computing the time.

Minnesota Statutes, sections 645.13 and 645.14 define how to count weeks and months as they relate to the amount of time either before or after a required posting or event.

Answered by Research Analyst Angie Storlie: [email protected].

Fire Safety Protocol

Q: Do we need to have our kitchen fire suppression system inspected?

LMC: The fire code requires that all fire protection systems are inspected, including fire detection, alarm, and extinguishing systems. The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) Standard 96 states that automatic extinguishing equipment for cooking equipment is inspected every six months. These inspections are typically completed by a third party that specializes in these systems. Learn more about NFPA 96 at bit.ly/NFPAstandard96.

The League of Minnesota Cities Insurance Trust often hears that kitchen fire suppression systems were installed when the kitchen was used for large events that included frying, grilling, and cooking operations. Over time, the use of these kitchens has changed, and may no longer be used for the originally designed purpose. Because there is an existing fire suppression system, it should still be inspected and in operational condition. If your city already has a contractor that inspects and certifies fire alarms, fire sprinklers, or even fire extinguishers, request that they add the kitchen fire suppression system to their inspections.

The Minnesota State Fire Marshal’s office is also a great resource for questions regarding the fire code and fire protection systems. Find additional fire code related information on the Minnesota State Fire Marshal’s website at bit.ly/MNFireCode.

Answered by Public Works and Public Safety Specialist Troy Walsh: [email protected].