The post 2025 Updates to Massachusetts Paid Family and Medical Leave: Adjustments to Benefit Amount and Average Weekly Wage with No Change to Contribution Rates January 1, 2025. appeared first on Hirsch Roberts Weinstein LLP.
Articles Discussing Massachusetts Wage & Hour Laws.
Massachusetts Updates Paid Family and Medical Leave Contribution Rates, Maximum Weekly Benefits for 2025
The Massachusetts Department of Family and Medical Leave has announced changes to the employer contribution rates and benefit amounts under the Paid
Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court Clarifies Franchisee vs. Employee Classification
In the ever-evolving landscape of employment law, a recent Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court (SJC) opinion, Patel v. 7-Eleven, Inc., has shed light on a critical question: When is a franchisee considered an employee of the franchisor? This question was at the heart of a case involving five franchisees and the
Massachusetts Joins Growing List of States Requiring Pay Transparency in Job Postings
Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey has signed into law “An Act Relative to Salary Pay Range Transparency,” requiring employers with at least 25 employees to include pay range information in job postings and advertisements. Covered employers will also need to provide pay range information directly to employees and applicants, upon request.
Massachusetts Enacts a New Pay Transparency Law
Massachusetts is the latest state to mandate salary transparency in job postings and disclosure of demographic and pay data to the government.
On July 31, 2024, Governor Maura Healey signed into law the “Frances Perkins Workplace Equity Act,” H.B. 4890. The law is named after Frances Perkins, the first woman
Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court Rejects Compensation Plan Allocating Commissions to Overtime and Premium Pay
On March 28, 2024, in Sutton v. Jordan’s Furniture, Inc., the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court (SJC) upheld a Massachusetts Superior Court decision finding the furniture retailer’s commission-based compensation scheme violated the Massachusetts Wage Act for paying commission-based sales employees their overtime and Sunday premium pay out of their earned commissions.
Massachusetts Superior Court Finds Incentive Payment Under Profit-Sharing Scheme Is Not a Commission Under Wage Act
On January 31, 2024, in Mehra v. Boston Globe Media Partners, LLC, a Massachusetts Superior Court judge held that a percent-of-profit incentive payment under a profit-sharing scheme is not a commission subject to the Massachusetts Wage Act.
Massachusetts Updates Paid Family and Medical Leave Poster, Notice, Contribution and Benefit Amounts
The Massachusetts Department of Family and Medical Leave has released an updated version of its workplace poster for 2024 reflecting the Paid Family and Medical Leave Act (PFMLA) contribution and benefit increases that went into effect on Jan. 1, 2024. The poster must be posted in a location where it can be
Construction Contractors and Certified Payroll Reports Under Massachusetts Prevailing Wage Law
Under the Massachusetts prevailing wage law (and most prevailing wage laws around the country), construction contractors performing construction on state-funded construction projects are required to pay employees the prevailing wages set by the state for work on the project. In addition, contractors are supposed to ensure that all subcontractors working on the project pay the proper prevailing wage.
Massachusetts Paid Family and Medical Leave Program: December 2023 End-of-Year Update
The Massachusetts Department of Family and Medical Leave (DFML) recently provided several significant updates related to the Commonwealth’s paid family and medical leave (PFML) program as 2023 comes to a close. Most recently, the DFML issued its updated 2024 notices, posters, and rate sheets. In the past month, it also
THE MASSACHUSETTS WAGE ACT: NOT ONLY FOR THOSE IN MASSACHUSETTS
For Questions/More Information
To discuss how the decision affects your organization, and for assistance in evaluating your potential risk, please contact your HRW attorney or:
Sarah Ruter (sruter@hrwlawyers.com / 617-348-4334); Pete Moser (pmoser@hrwlawyers.com / 617-348-4323); or Any member of the HRW Team.
The
Is Pay Transparency and Reporting Coming to 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 state regulators and create reporting obligations
State Law Remedies Not Available for Violations of FLSA, Massachusetts High Court Holds
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).
Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court Holds That FLSA Preempts Wage Act Remedies for Federal Overtime Violations
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
Payment of Final Wages Upon Separation: New SJC Decision Increases Employer Exposure
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