A number of states give current employees a right to the pay scale for their own position on request, separate from any posting requirement. California is the clearest example, and the request is a simple written one. In the EU, the Pay Transparency Directive adds a right to average pay levels for work of equal value broken down by sex, in the member states that have transposed it.
Two different rights
The pay scale for your role. Several US states require an employer to provide it to a current employee on request. It is the band, not what colleagues earn, and that distinction is what makes it disclosable.
Comparative pay data. Under the EU Directive, employees may request average pay levels for categories of workers doing the same work or work of equal value, broken down by sex. This is a stronger right and it exists only where a member state has legislated.
How to make the request
In writing, plainly, to HR rather than your manager. “Please provide the pay scale for my current position.” No reason is required and giving one invites a discussion you did not ask for.
Keep the request and the reply. Where a right exists, a refusal is itself a matter the state agency will look at, and a paper trail is what makes that possible.
What it gives you
The band, which tells you whether there is headroom above you and how much. That single fact reshapes a raise conversation: asking to move within a band is a manager’s decision, while asking to exceed it is a policy request that will almost certainly fail.
What it does not give you
Individual colleagues’ salaries. No US state requires that, and it is not what these provisions are for.
If your state has no such right
Ask anyway. Many employers publish bands internally or will share them on request, and an employer who refuses to tell an existing employee the band for their own job has communicated something worth knowing.
Common questions
Can I ask my employer for my pay band?
In several states you have a right to the pay scale for your own position on request. Elsewhere you can still ask, and many employers will tell you.
How should I make the request?
In writing, to HR, without giving a reason. Keep the request and the response.
Does it tell me what colleagues earn?
No. It is the band for the role, not individual salaries, and no US state requires the latter.
What does the EU add?
A right to average pay levels for work of the same or equal value broken down by sex, in member states that have transposed the Directive.
Why does the band matter?
Because moving within a band is a manager's decision and exceeding it is a policy request. Knowing which conversation you are having changes how you have it.