Massachusetts Employment Law Blog

The Americans with Disability Act (ADA) protects individuals who are associated with a disabled individual from employment discrimination. However, the ADA only applies to employers with 15 or more workers. The Massachusetts employment discrimination statute is a little more inclusive, covering employers with six or more workers.  Under the ruling of the Supreme Judicial Court…

Drive a truck with a gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) under 10,000 pounds? Then you are eligible for overtime. Importantly, the GVWR refers to the weight a vehicle can carry, not the weight it is actually carrying. The court decided that GVWR was more important than the actual weight, because the actual weight can easily…

A discretionary clause cannot remove earned commissions from wage protection. The Massachusetts Wage Act protects money workers truly earn. For instance, Prudential Insurance created a plan that let it interpret rules. It also warned employees it might deny commissions after firing for cause. Yet, the court found this wording too weak because workers had already…

A Massachusetts man who was paid after being laid off, will receive even more money because his former employer failed to specify that the extra money was for unpaid vacation days. In Dixon v. City of Malden, Mr. Dixon was dismissed from his role as a director of a nursing home, and at the time…

Philip was the Keynote Speaker at the Human Capital Series run by the Small Business Association of New England. Philip gave a lecture on January 30, 2013 entitled “Mitigating Your Employment Risks.”

Many employers automatically deduct meal breaks from employee pay, but never actually give employees those breaks. In Massachusetts that is a crime, but while the employer might suffer criminally the question often comes up as to how much pay an employee should receive for that unpaid work time. As we’ve reported in a past blog…

Walmart reported Black Friday employee walkouts to the National Labor Relations Board. Walmart claimed the protests were illegal picketing. Soon after, the United for Respect filed a response. The group said the protests were protected under labor law. The NLRB allowed the walkouts for now. It started a fast investigation to verify claims. What Labor…

In an effort to deter massive employment abuse, and in a nod to those employers who refuse to take the low road but suffer serious economic disadvantages against competitors who cut corners, Governor Deval Patrick has signed into law new requirements for temporary staffing agencies. Now, in addition to other requirements, these employers may no…

The Americans with Disabilities Act protects workers linked to a disabled person. However, it only applies to companies with 15 or more staff. In contrast, Massachusetts employment discrimination statute extends coverage to companies with six or more staff. Under the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts ruling in Flagg v. Alimed, workers are safe from discrimination,…

In a ruling unusual for its legal support, the Supreme Court has ruled that Obamacare is constitutional. While it comes as little surprise that the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010 is constitutional, the reasoning is curious. The most controversial component of the Act was the individual mandate to purchase health insurance or…