Massachusetts has enacted a new law imposing pay transparency and pay data reporting obligations on employers in the state. The law will take effect on July 31, 2025....more
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...more
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. The law prohibits...more
In Burnett v. Ocean Properties, Ltd., et al., the First Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a jury verdict for the plaintiff in his failure to accommodate claim under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the Maine Human...more
3/12/2021
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Appeals ,
Compensatory Damages ,
Disability Discrimination ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Human Rights Act ,
Joint Employers ,
Jury Verdicts ,
Punitive Damages ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Single Integrated Employer ,
Workplace Injury
On February 12, 2020, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court (SJC) issued an opinion with significant implications for Massachusetts employers with commissioned employees. In Parker v. EnerNOC, Inc. (SJC-12703), the SJC...more
2/25/2020
/ Appeals ,
Contract Terms ,
Damages ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Litigation ,
Jury Verdicts ,
MA Supreme Judicial Court ,
Retaliation ,
Sales Commissions ,
Termination ,
Treble Damages ,
Wage Act
On June 5, 2019, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court (SJC) issued a decision emphasizing that an employer’s well-designed and thorough internal investigations made prior to a termination decision can provide a strong...more
Here is the latest information on the Massachusetts Paid Family and Medical Leave Act (PFML) requirements since our last report on April 17, 2019. As the date for issuing final regulations and starting employer contributions...more
Last year, Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker signed into law what has been referred to as the “grand bargain” legislation. When it was enacted, we covered some of the law’s key provisions that would have a significant...more
4/18/2019
/ Comment Period ,
Covered Employer ,
Employer Mandates ,
Exemptions ,
Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) ,
Governor Baker ,
Medical Leave ,
Paid Family Leave Law ,
Payroll Deductions ,
Proposed Regulation ,
Wage and Hour
On March 1, 2018, the Massachusetts Attorney General (AG) issued detailed guidance on the amendments to the Massachusetts Equal Pay Act (MEPA), which are set to go into effect on July 1, 2018. The amendments, which were...more
Massachusetts employers are reminded that, per legislation signed by Governor Charlie Baker in July 2016, qualifying veterans scheduled to work on Veterans Day who wish to participate in Veterans Day activities in their...more
We recently reported on the sweeping pay equity legislation that garnered much attention throughout the most recent legislative session in Massachusetts. After much anticipation, this week Governor Charlie Baker signed the...more
As we recently anticipated, on August 1, 2016 Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker signed into law sweeping legislation that significantly modifies Massachusetts’s equal pay laws. Many consider the new law to be the most...more
Continuing a trend, Massachusetts is poised to implement major changes to its equal pay laws. Following the lead of California, New York, and Maryland, which each enacted expansive equal pay laws in the last few months,...more
7/29/2016
/ Affirmative Defenses ,
Anti-Pay Secrecy ,
Continuing Violation Theory ,
Equal Pay ,
Gender Equity ,
Governor Baker ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Job Applicants ,
Pay Discrimination ,
Pay Equity Laws ,
Pending Legislation ,
Substantially Similar ,
Wage and Hour
Maryland recently passed into law sweeping revisions to its existing equal pay law. The new law, signed by Governor Hogan on May 19, 2016, will take effect on October 1, 2016. With the passage of the Equal Pay for Equal Work...more
Readers are probably aware that last year, Massachusetts voters approved a new sick leave law that went into effect on July 1, 2015. Many employers with preexisting leave policies, however, took advantage of the so-called...more
As many of you are aware, the July 1, 2015 effective date of the Massachusetts earned sick leave law is looming. In summary, the new law provides that employers of 11 or more employees must provide their Massachusetts...more
On November 4, 2014, Massachusetts voters approved by a decisive margin (approximately 60 percent in favor) a new measure requiring employers to provide sick leave to all employees (with certain limited exceptions regarding...more
Effective January 1, 2014, a new law in Rhode Island will ban employers from inquiring on job applications about the criminal histories of applicants. ...more
The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court recently addressed a significant issue to Massachusetts employers—whether general releases can bar employees from bringing Wage Act claims against their employers. Crocker v. Townsend...more
Rhode Island Governor Lincoln Chafee recently signed into law legislation entitled the “Homeless Bill of Rights.” Specifically, the new law protects individuals solely because of their homeless status in a variety of ways....more