Employment Law Information Network
All Things Labor and Employment Law
Earlier this month, the Massachusetts Supreme Court Justices ruled that employees terminated in the state are entitled to triple their accrued wages if employers do not settle financial obligations the same day they separate.
This is a significant decision that holds employers accountable for their employees’ due earnings without
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. 14, 2022).
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 Act
Under the express language of the Wage Act¹:
(i) “any employee discharged from such employment shall be paid in full on the day of his discharge”, with “wages” being defined to include all earned vacation time,
(ii) an aggrieved employee may file a lawsuit “for injunctive relief, for any damages
In Reuter v.
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If you have any questions, please contact:
Pete Moser (pmoser@hrwlawyers.com / 617-348-4323); Dave Wilson (dwilson@hrwlawyers.com / 617-348-4314); or Any member of the HRW Team to discuss your particular situation.
On June 10, 2021, the First Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the dismissal of a plaintiff’s lawsuit alleging, among other things, failure to pay wages under the Massachusetts Wage Act. In Rose v. RTN Federal Credit Union, the First Circuit held that the Labor Management Relations Act (LMRA) preempted the
Employees who claim that their employers misclassified them as exempt from the overtime requirements of Massachusetts law frequently attempt to recover overtime pay for hours worked outside the statute of limitations applicable to statutory overtime claims. In pursuing these claims, employees often argue that the statute of limitations should be
The post MA Minimum Wage & Service Rate Set to Increase on January 1, 2021 appeared first on Hirsch Roberts Weinstein LLP.
The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court (“SJC”) issued an important decision on May 8, 2019, in the matter of Sullivan et al v. Sleepy’s LLC et al regarding overtime and Sunday pay requirements for inside salespeople who are compensated entirely by commission.
Beginning on January 1, 2019, the Massachusetts minimum wage will be raised from $11.00 to $12.00, part of a tiered effort that will raise the Commonwealth’s minimum wage to $15.00 by 2023. Similarly, the tipped minimum wage increases from $3.75 to $4.35 on January 1 and will likewise continue to increase yearly until it reaches $6.75 in 2023. Under the new law, retail employees’ Sunday time rate will decrease from time-and-a-half to one and four-tenths the employee’s regular rate. The rate will decrease yearly until it is gradually eliminated in 2023.
On January 29, 2018, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court held that sick pay does not constitute wages under the Massachusetts Payment of Wages Law, M.G.L. c. 149, § 148. As a result, employers are not liable under the Payment of Wages Law if they choose not to pay out accrued, unused sick pay to employees upon termination of employment.
Massachusetts law requires most retail employers to pay employees time and a half for work performed on Sundays and certain holidays. In a case of first impression, a Massachusetts Superior Court judge recently held that retail employers that fail to make such payments may be sued under the state Payment of Wages Law, thereby subjecting them to mandatory awards of treble damages and attorneys’ fees.
On August 1, 2016, Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker made news across the Commonwealth and around the country when he signed into law An Act to Establish Pay Equity (the “Pay Equity Act”), which strengthens the state’s existing equal pay law and imposes certain new obligations and limitations on employers. This Client Alert provides an overview of the key provisions of the new law. Employers should take advantage of the time before the Pay Equity Act goes into effect on July 1, 2018 to understand the requirements of the law and consider compliance strategies.
Massachusetts has become the latest state to strengthen its pay equity laws. Governor Charlie Baker signed a bill amending the state’s Equal Pay Act on August 1, 2016. The new law, which becomes effective on January 1, 2018, imposes more rigorous equal pay obligations on employers and provides for automatic triple damages and attorneys’ fees, among other things.
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