As the number of COVID-19 cases began to rise in the United States, colleges and universities around the country took proactive steps to limit the spread of the disease on campuses. Students were asked to return home; faculty...more
5/6/2020
/ Breach of Contract ,
Class Action ,
Colleges ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Educational Institutions ,
Refunds ,
Reimbursements ,
Student Housing ,
Students ,
Tuition ,
Universities
Seyfarth Synopsis: On May 4, 2020, the Massachusetts Executive Office of Housing and Economic Development (“EOHED”) issued guidance relaxing its previous COVID-19 related restrictions on Massachusetts retailers and...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: With the advent of the CARES Act, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts has taken steps to implement Pandemic Unemployment Assistance, a new measure aimed at providing unemployment insurance to gig economy...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: On April 7, 2020, the Massachusetts Executive Office of Housing and Economic Development (“EOHED”) issued its updated COVID-19 Essential Services FAQs, providing more details on what is and what is not...more
4/8/2020
/ ABC Test ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employee Definition ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Essential Functions ,
Freelance Workers ,
Gig Economy ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Independent Contractors ,
Labor Regulations ,
Misclassification ,
Payroll Taxes ,
State and Local Government ,
State Labor Laws ,
Wage and Hour
Seyfarth Synopsis: On March 23, 2020, the Massachusetts Division of Insurance issued Bulletin 2020-5, which addresses the Division’s expectations for insurance carriers during the COVID-19 crisis. ...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: In a February 12, 2020 decision, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court held that future commissions a plaintiff would have earned but for her retaliatory termination were subject to trebling under the...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: During a tumultuous week, Massachusetts enacted legislation to eliminate the traditional one-week waiting period for unemployment benefits. ...more
UPDATE: The new rule published in the Federal Register on December 18, 2019 was to take effect on April 16, 2020, but that effective date has been moved back to June 1. 2020 by the NLRB....more
Seyfarth Synopsis: On January 24, 2020, the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination issued significant changes to its regulations regarding the processing of cases. The new procedural regulations are a mixed bag for...more
3/12/2020
/ Administrative Proceedings ,
Class Action ,
Class Certification ,
Discovery ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Investigations ,
Motion for Reconsideration ,
New Regulations ,
Probable Cause ,
Regulatory Burden ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
State Labor Laws
Seyfarth Synopsis: As we prepare to enter 2020, employers with a presence in Massachusetts should be mindful of certain changes to the wage and hour laws that will take effect in the new year. Most of these changes stem...more
12/30/2019
/ Blue Laws ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Exempt-Employees ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Food Service Workers ,
Holiday Pay ,
Labor Regulations ,
Medical Leave ,
Minimum Wage ,
New Legislation ,
Over-Time ,
Paid Family Leave Law ,
Rate of Pay ,
Restaurant Industry ,
State and Local Government ,
State Labor Laws ,
Sunday Pay Laws ,
Tipped Employees ,
Wage and Hour ,
White-Collar Exemptions
Seyfarth Synopsis: On November 27, 2019, the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit held that, under Massachusetts law, a terminated employee asserting a claim for being deprived of lost compensation in breach...more
12/24/2019
/ At-Will Employment ,
Bonuses ,
Breach of Implied Contract ,
Compensation & Benefits ,
Contract Terms ,
Corporate Executives ,
Covenant of Good Faith and Fair Dealing ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Contract ,
Employment Litigation ,
FDA Approval ,
Former Employee ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Labor Regulations ,
Lost Wages ,
Medical Devices ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
State and Local Government ,
State Labor Laws ,
Termination
Seyfarth Synopsis: On December 13, 2019, the National Labor Relations Board (“Board”) announced the final rule amending the procedures used for elections to determine whether employees desire to be represented by a labor...more
12/20/2019
/ Ambush Election Rules ,
Federal Labor Laws ,
Final Rules ,
Labor Regulations ,
Labor Relations ,
New Rules ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
Quickie Election Rules ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Union Elections ,
Unions
Among the most common types of wage and hour lawsuits in Massachusetts are independent contractor misclassification suits. These actions arise when an individual who provides a service claims that: (1) he or she was...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: The SJC issued two important decisions in April and early May. In early May, the SJC found that commission-only salespeople are entitled to additional compensation for overtime and Sunday work, even though...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: On January 29, 2019, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court held that the failure to grant a lateral transfer may be the basis of a discrimination claim under Massachusetts anti-discrimination law where...more
Even fair-minded employers, with sound policies, face “off-the-clock” claims. That is, employers have to defend against lawsuits in which employees argue that they worked hours for which their employers failed to pay them. ...more
Effective July 1, 2018, the Massachusetts Equal Pay Act (the “Act”) requires employers to pay employees of different genders equal wages for comparable work unless the difference in pay is explained by the Act’s enumerated...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: An important issue for colleges and universities is whether faculty are “managerial” employees under the National Labor Relations Act, and thus precluded from union organizing. ...more
Tip #1: Consider An Arbitration Agreement—With A Class Action Waiver -
Until recently, there has been much debate about the enforceability of arbitration agreements containing class action waivers. Courts disagreed as to...more
Last week, Florida Senator Marco Rubio introduced the “Freedom to Compete Act” (the “Act”) proposing to amend the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) of 1938 to ban non-competes for most non-exempt workers. ...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: The Massachusetts Attorney General’s office (“AGO”) issued Guidance on March 1 about the changes to the Massachusetts Equal Pay Act (“MEPA”) that will take effect July 1. Employers preparing to comply with...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: A recent decision by the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court limits the scope of the Wage Act to exclude sick time payments and potentially other types of contingent compensation. ...more
2/12/2018
/ Accrued Benefits ,
Compensation & Benefits ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Litigation ,
Hiring & Firing ,
MA Supreme Judicial Court ,
Popular ,
Port Authority ,
Sick Leave ,
State and Local Government ,
State Labor Laws ,
Treble Damages ,
Unpaid Wages ,
Wage Act ,
Wage and Hour
Seyfarth Synopsis: A 2016 decision of the National Labor Relations Board (“Board”) finding that the graduate students at Columbia University were employees under the National Labor Relations Act (“NLRA”) has been teed up for...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: In an important decision, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court clarified the scope of personal liability for unpaid wages under the Massachusetts Wage Act. The SJC held that board members and directors...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: On December 1, 2017, the newly-confirmed General Counsel of the National Relations Board, Peter Robb, issued a memorandum to the NLRB regional offices listing legal issues that should be submitted for...more
12/15/2017
/ Columbia University ,
Jurisdiction ,
NLRB ,
NLRB General Counsel ,
Northwestern University ,
Pacific Lutheran University ,
Policy Memorandums ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Regulatory Standards ,
Religious Schools ,
Section 7 ,
Student Athletes ,
Teaching Assistants ,
Unfair Labor Practices