Massachusetts

Massachusetts employers should keep an eye on a flurry of proposed legislation recently filed in both the state House of Representatives and Senate. One bill would impose new pay transparency obligations on Massachusetts employers. Another would require Massachusetts employers to report pay data to

For many employers in Massachusetts, remote work has become part of the new normal, with nearly a quarter of employees in the state having worked remotely in 2021, according to one recent media report. While such arrangements can be convenient and even allow for cost savings, they present novel chal

The Massachusetts Department of Family and Medical Leave (DFML) recently published a new workplace poster, notifications, and new rate sheets for all employers in the state for 2023 regarding the Paid Family and Medical Leave (PFML) law. Employers are required to notify their employees of new contri

What are some of the key similarities and differences between PFML laws and the FMLA? Paid Family Medical Leave Laws may appear very similar to the federal Family Medical Leave Act, but there are also some very important distinctions. We can begin with the similarities, which – full

On July 26, 2022, Governor Charlie Baker signed into law “An Act Prohibiting Discrimination Based on Natural and Protective Hairstyles,” popularly known as the Massachusetts CROWN Act. The effective date of the new law is October 24, 2022.

The Massachusetts Department of Family and Medical Leave has announced changes to the employer contribution rates and benefit amounts under the Paid Family and Medical Leave Act (PFMLA) effective January 1, 2023.

Voters in Massachusetts may be asked whether to repeal state law granting standard Massachusetts driver’s licenses to undocumented immigrants in November. In February 2022, the Massachusetts House of Representatives passed a bill to allow undocumented immigrants to apply for standard Massachusetts d

Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker has signed the Creating a Respectful and Open World for Natural Hair Act (CROWN Act) into law, making Massachusetts the 18th state to enact such a law.

On July 26, 2022, Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker signed into law “An Act Prohibiting Discrimination Based on Natural and Protective Hairstyles,” also known as the Massachusetts CROWN Act.

A provision in the enacted state budget for fiscal year 2023 would have amended the Massachusetts Paid Family and Medical Leave Act (PFMLA) to provide employers and employees more flexibility to use other accrued benefits to supplement paid benefits received from the state.

In a decision that further clarifies Massachusetts law with regard to employee classification, the Massachusetts Appeals Court recently held that home inspectors working on behalf of an inspectional services company were independent contractors (and not employees) under the ABC test for determining

On July 18, 2022, Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker signed the Commonwealth’s Fiscal Year 2023 budget, which includes a major amendment to the Massachusetts Paid Family and Medical Leave Act ( PFML ).

A provision in the enacted state budget for fiscal year 2023 amends the Massachusetts Paid Family and Medical Leave Act (PFMLA) to provide employers and employees more flexibility to use other accrued benefits to supplement paid benefits received from the state.

On July 26, 2022, Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker signed into law the Creating a Respectful and Open World for Natural Hair (“CROWN”) Act that bans discrimination based upon natural and protective hairstyles in workplaces, school districts and certain school-related organizations. Specifically,

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit recently affirmed a district court finding that the Massachusetts Wage Act did not apply to a person who mostly lived and worked in Florida. While the court’s decision in Viscito v. National Planning Corp .

Employees who assert wage claims available only under the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) cannot recover the greater remedies available under the Massachusetts Wage Act (MWA), the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court has held. Devaney v. Zucchini Gold, LLC , 2022 Mass. LEXIS 156 (Mass. Apr.

On April 14, 2022, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court (SJC) ruled that when an employee pursues and succeeds on a claim for the failure to pay overtime wages under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), the employee may not recover treble damages and other remedies under the Massachusetts Wage A

When an employer does not pay an employee earned wages within the time frames set forth in the Massachusetts Wage Act (MWA), the employee is entitled to three times the wages owed, regardless of the length of the delay or whether the wages are paid prior to a civil suit being filed, the Massachusett

In Reuter v.

On April 4, 2022, in Reuter v. City of Methuen , the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court (SJC) held that employers are strictly liable for treble damages for making late wage payments, even when an employee has not yet filed suit asserting a wage claim. In so holding, the SJC rejected an