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Laura Mitchell is a principal in the Denver office of Jackson Lewis P.C. and leads the firm’s Workplace Analytics and Preventive Strategies Pay Equity subgroup. She partners with employers to evaluate, develop and implement policies and practices that ensure workplace fairness while mitigating legal risk. Laura is a guiding force in the firm’s most specialized and technical practice areas where she leverages an analytics-focused approach to partner with her clients in building legally compliant programs around which they can anchor their workplaces achieving productivity and stability.

Laura understands that creating a competitive advantage for employers in today’s workplace involves using a data-driven approach to counsel companies on the development of proactive and equitable non-discriminatory practices in hiring, promotions, separations and pay—and where advancements in technology can create both opportunities for efficiencies and risk that can be measured. Committed to putting her clients’ organizational goals first and foremost while balancing legal risk, Laura views herself as an extension of her clients’ team, responsible for providing proactive guidance and engaging in transparent, ongoing communication. Staying the course with employers across their organizational journey while balancing legal compliance obligations throughout their employees’ lifecycle ensures Laura’s position as a go-to resource.

Laura works with companies across all industries—both new and well-established multi-national organizations of all sizes—to realize the combined vision of legal compliance, increased productivity and economic growth enhanced by a focus on pay equity.  As part of the pay equity journey, she advises employers on the evolving pay transparency landscape, working to align compliant practices with the practical realities of the business world.

Laura partners closely with government contractors to understand, implement and demonstrate compliance with their EEO regulatory and compliance obligations. She also works closely with non-government contractor clients to conduct risk assessments of their programs, policies, and training to align with federal and state anti-discrimination requirements.

Laura is the editor and a principal contributor of the GovCon Employment Exchange blog and presents on pay equity and government contractor obligations. To round out her days, Laura enjoys spending time with her family and friends attending sports events, working out, riding her bike, playing pickleball and taking in Colorado’s incomparable sunsets.

On October 9, 2025, the New York City Council passed amendments to local laws that, if passed, would impose new pay equity reporting obligations on certain private employers and require the city to conduct annual pay equity studies.  These measures are designed to identify and address wage disparities based on gender, race, and ethnicity.

Beginning October 27, 2025, Cleveland employers with 15 or more employees will need to comply with the city’s new pay transparency and compensation history requirements. Ordinance No. 104-2025 prohibits covered employers from asking applicants about their salary history, including benefits, and bars employers from using compensation history to screen candidates or make hiring decisions.

In recognition of the 15th anniversary of the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, the Biden Administration has released a proposal that would prohibit federal contractors from using a job applicant’s prior salary history when setting pay and require federal contractors to post the expected salary range in its job postings. >>Learn more here.

Colorado’s revised Equal Pay Transparency Rules go into effect on January 1, 2024. The Colorado Department of Labor and Employment (CDLE) has released additional guidance following release of its final rules for implementation. The CDLE’s Interpretive Notice & Formal Opinion (INFO) #9A provides CDLE’s official opinions, expectations, and examples for employer compliance with the

The Colorado Department of Labor Employment (CDLE) has issued the highly anticipated final Equal Pay Transparency (EPT) Rules and the Statement of Basis, Purpose, Specific Statutory Authority, and Findings, which seek to clarify the Colorado Ensure Equal Pay for Equal Work Act. The rules, which are largely unchanged from their proposed version, will become

The Colorado Department of Labor and Employment has issued proposed Equal Pay Transparency (EPT) Rules. The proposed rules seek to clarify Colorado’s Ensure Equal Pay for Equal Work Act. The Act, which goes into effect January 1, 2024, amended Colorado’s pay transparency statute. A public hearing on the proposed rules is scheduled for