As we close out 2024 and look ahead to 2025, one thing is clear: this has been a year like no other. From a groundbreaking Supreme Court ruling to a pivotal election result that will usher in a new administration, employers...more
12/12/2024
/ Affirmative Action ,
Agricultural Sector ,
Analytics ,
Artificial Intelligence ,
California ,
Car Dealerships ,
Construction Industry ,
Construction Workers ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Privacy ,
Educational Institutions ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Contract ,
Employment Litigation ,
Employment Policies ,
Federal Contractors ,
Federal Labor Laws ,
Foreign Workers ,
Healthcare Workers ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Hospitality Industry ,
International Labor Laws ,
Labor Reform ,
Labor Relations ,
Manufacturing Employers ,
Mexico ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Pay Equity Laws ,
Professional Employer Organization ,
Retailers ,
Sports ,
Staffing Agencies ,
State Labor Laws ,
Student Athletes ,
Technology Sector ,
Trade Secrets ,
Wage and Hour ,
Workplace Investigations ,
Workplace Safety
President-elect Trump surprised the business community on Friday night when he announced Lori Chavez-DeRemer as his nominee to lead the U.S. Department of Labor. Her selection was met by skepticism by some in the employer...more
11/25/2024
/ Corporate Counsel ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Foreign Workers ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Independent Contractors ,
Joint Employers ,
Minimum Wage ,
Over-Time ,
Presidential Appointments ,
Secretary of Labor ,
Small Business ,
Trump Administration ,
Unions ,
Wage and Hour ,
Workplace Safety
In the recent Massachusetts state election, voters faced a pivotal decision on a ballot initiative aiming to eliminate the tip credit system. The proposal sought to require employers to pay tipped employees the full state...more
Voters decided more than just who would be the next President and who would be in Congress this Election Day – they also voted on a slew of state ballot measures that aimed to change your workplace. Here’s a recap of the most...more
11/8/2024
/ Ballot Measures ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employment Policies ,
Equal Protection ,
Hospitality Industry ,
Marijuana ,
Medical Marijuana ,
Minimum Wage ,
Paid Sick Leave ,
Recreational Use ,
State Labor Laws ,
Unions ,
Wage and Hour
Now that we know Donald Trump will return to the White House as President, it’s time for employers to take a look at what they might expect during his second term in office. We have gathered insights from some of our firm’s...more
11/7/2024
/ Artificial Intelligence ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Data Collection ,
EEO-1 ,
Election Results ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Policies ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Federal Labor Laws ,
Federal Taxes ,
Foreign Workers ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Hospitality Industry ,
Immigration Reform ,
Income Taxes ,
Independent Contractors ,
Labor Reform ,
Labor Relations ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Minimum Wage ,
Misclassification ,
Over-Time ,
Paid Leave ,
Pay Data ,
Popular ,
Tipped Employees ,
Tips ,
Trump Administration ,
Wage and Hour ,
Workplace Safety
While Maine’s new Paid Family and Medical Leave (PFML) benefits won’t roll out until May 2026, the employer contribution requirements kick in this January. Starting in 2025, any employer with at least one employee in the...more
The Massachusetts Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development has announced important updates to state employment benefits for 2025. The State Average Weekly Wage (SAWW) has increased modestly to $1,829.13 from...more
In a rare win for Massachusetts employers, the Supreme Judicial Court just ruled that employers generally have no obligation to allow employees to continue accruing benefits, such as seniority, vacation, and sick time, while...more
Colleges and universities are feeling the heat after recent increases to the salary threshold for employees to be exempt from overtime pay under federal wage and hour law. The new rules may have significant implications for...more
8/15/2024
/ Coaches ,
Colleges ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Exempt-Employees ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Misclassification ,
New Rules ,
Over-Time ,
Salaried Employees ,
Universities ,
Wage and Hour
Yesterday, a federal appeals court became the first to rule that student-athletes at NCAA Division I schools can bring a lawsuit claiming they are employees and may be entitled to minimum wage and overtime payments under...more
7/12/2024
/ College Athletes ,
Colleges ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employees ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Minimum Wage ,
NCAA ,
Over-Time ,
Student Athletes ,
Universities ,
Wage and Hour
Uber and Lyft just reached a $175 million settlement with Massachusetts state prosecutors that permits their drivers to stay classified as independent contractors – not employees – but entitles the drivers to significant...more
Massachusetts voters will decide this November whether employers may continue taking a “tip credit” and paying tipped employees below the state’s standard minimum wage. While restaurant industry representatives fought to keep...more
The National Collegiate Athletic Association is on the verge of settling a major antitrust lawsuit that may radically alter the equation when it comes to student-athlete employment. The pending settlement in House v. NCAA...more
5/28/2024
/ Antitrust Litigation ,
Back Pay ,
College Athletes ,
Colleges ,
Compensation ,
Minimum Wage ,
Name and Likeness ,
NCAA ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
Over-Time ,
School Sports ,
Student Athletes ,
Universities ,
Wage and Hour
When Taylor Swift revealed the track list for “The Tortured Poets Department” – a new album she’ll release on April 19 – fans immediately began theorizing about what might have inspired each song. While your #FPSwifties live...more
4/12/2024
/ Ban the Box ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employment Policies ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Human Resources Professionals ,
Job Applicants ,
Notice Requirements ,
Recruitment Policies ,
Remote Working ,
Wage and Hour ,
Workplace Romances
While we respect Taylor Swift’s accomplishments for so many reasons, your #FPSwifties particularly admire Ms. Swift as an employer. From employee appreciation (those legendary tour bonuses sound really nice!) to her...more
When I reflect on the relationship that our firm has with our clients, I’m most proud of the fact that you can always count on us. That often means defending complex litigation, steering you through regulatory threats,...more
12/4/2023
/ 401k ,
Acquisitions ,
Affirmative Action ,
Artificial Intelligence ,
Automotive Industry ,
Bias ,
California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) ,
Car Dealerships ,
Chevron Deference ,
Child Labor ,
College Admissions ,
Colleges ,
Construction Industry ,
Consumer Privacy Rights ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Deletion ,
Data Privacy ,
Data Security ,
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Diversity ,
E-Verify ,
Educational Institutions ,
EEO-1 ,
Electronic Records ,
Employee Handbooks ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Eligibility Verification ,
Employment Litigation ,
Employment Policies ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
EU ,
Exempt-Employees ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Federal Contractors ,
Federal Labor Laws ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Foreign Nationals ,
Foreign Workers ,
Form I-9 ,
H-1B ,
Health Care Providers ,
Healthcare Facilities ,
Healthcare Workers ,
Highly Compensated Employees ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Hospitality Industry ,
Hotels ,
Human Resources Professionals ,
International Labor Laws ,
Joint Employers ,
Jury Verdicts ,
L-1 Visas ,
Labor Reform ,
Labor Relations ,
Labor Shortage ,
Manufacturing Employers ,
Mergers ,
Mexico ,
Name and Likeness ,
New Legislation ,
New Rules ,
NLRB ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
OFCCP ,
OSHA ,
Over-Time ,
Pay Data ,
Pay Equity Laws ,
Pay Transparency ,
Payroll Taxes ,
Privacy Laws ,
Professional Employer Organization ,
Proposed Rules ,
Recordkeeping Requirements ,
Recruitment Policies ,
Remote Working ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Restaurant Industry ,
Restrictive Covenants ,
Retirement Plan ,
Salaried Employees ,
Scheduling Letters ,
School Districts ,
School Policies ,
SCOTUS ,
SECURE Act ,
Severance Agreements ,
Sports ,
Staffing Agencies ,
State Labor Laws ,
State of Emergency ,
Student Athletes ,
Student Loans ,
Students ,
Tip Credit ,
Title IX ,
Trade Secrets ,
Transgender ,
Union Organizers ,
Unions ,
Universities ,
USCIS ,
Wage and Hour ,
Workplace Safety ,
Workplace Violence
Massachusetts recently announced major changes to the Paid Family and Medical Leave Act, including changes allowing employees to “top off” PFML benefits with accrued paid time off and a sizeable increase in contribution...more
Massachusetts enacted a five-year plan in 2018 to increase the minimum wage. The plan, which resulted from a “grand bargain” between employee advocates and the business community, carried significant implications for...more
Employers operating in certain states should note that the 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals just provided some clarity on the Fair Labor Standards Act’s (FLSA’s) administrative exemption. A federal appeals court held that...more
When the US Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division published a Final Rule on the regular rate in late 2019, it gave employers the freedom to more easily offer perks and benefits to their employees without running afoul...more
1/4/2023
/ Bonuses ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employer Contributions ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Gifts ,
Holiday Pay ,
Look-Back Measurement Period ,
Over-Time ,
Premium Pay ,
Profit Sharing ,
Rate of Pay ,
Stock Options ,
Tipped Employees ,
Vacation Pay ,
Wage and Hour
It’s never easy to make accurate predictions about what we might expect to see in the workplace in the coming year. After all:
- At the start of 2020, no one could have predicted COVID-19.
- None of us had heard the phrase...more
11/1/2022
/ Affirmative Action ,
Background Checks ,
Blockchain ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Corporate Governance ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Security ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employee Privacy Rights ,
Employee Retention ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Policies ,
Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) ,
Federal Contractors ,
Gig Economy ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Immigration Procedures ,
Labor Relations ,
Leave of Absence ,
Pay Equity Laws ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Trade Secrets ,
Vaccinations ,
Wage and Hour ,
Workplace Safety
Massachusetts employers should review and update their employee handbook policies and notices to ensure they accurately reflect Paid Family and Medical Leave (PFML) obligations. Notably, as the second year of PFML draws to a...more
Fall baseball provides a few guarantees for fans, as playoff races, assaults on historical records, and jockeying for draft position typically imbue the last month of the season with an air of certain uncertainty. This year,...more
The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court (SJC) held yesterday that local Grubhub delivery drivers are not exempt from the Federal Arbitration Act (FAA), and those workers can be compelled to individually arbitrate their...more
7/28/2022
/ Arbitration ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Class Action Arbitration Waivers ,
Delivery Drivers ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Litigation ,
Federal Arbitration Act ,
GrubHub ,
Interstate Commerce ,
MA Supreme Judicial Court ,
Non-Exempt Employees ,
Wage and Hour
This summer marks the second year with Juneteenth as a premium pay holiday for Massachusetts retailers. In 2020, as part of a COVID-19-related spending bill, the Massachusetts legislature added Juneteenth National...more