Massachusetts Employment Law Blog

The Massachusetts Wage Act finally received a major clarification. The amendment started on July 13, 2008. It confirmed that workers can collect triple (treble) damages when companies fail to pay earned wages on time. This applies when employees file lawsuits to recover pay. Additionally, lawmakers reinforced that the Commonwealth will treat wage theft as a…

On May 15, 2008, the U.S. Department of Labor issued guidance that clarified how companies must pay workers for compensable time under the Fair Labor Standards Act. The update confirmed that companies must count missed meal periods and extra shift reporting time as paid work time. This also impacts overtime calculations. What the DOL Confirms…

In 2008, the Massachusetts Attorney General’s Office released guidance on the 2004 update to Massachusetts Independent Contractor Law. The law presumes a worker is an employee. So, it makes employers carry the burden of proof. The advisory explains when a company can treat a worker as a contractor instead. The 3-Part Test Employers Must Prove…

More than 500 current and former workers from the New Bedford factory Michael Bianco, Inc. filed a federal class action lawsuit. The case alleges wage theft, unpaid overtime, and illegal time deductions. Key Allegations Explained Clearly The lawsuit claims the company built a payroll scheme to avoid paying overtime. Many workers logged a full day…

The Federal District Court of Florida just ruled in Galdames v. N&D Investment Corp., that undocumented workers are entitled to the same protections of the federal overtime laws as those workers who are in the United States legally. Specifically, the Court held that “Defendants argument that Jaqueline Galdames and Guillermo Osorio are illegal aliens not…

February 17, 2008 The Hon. Deval Patrick, GovernorOffice of the GovernorState HouseBoston, MA 02133 RE: Effort to Clarify the Massachusetts Wage Act Dear Governor Patrick: I wrote to you in December 2006, as you were assembling your transition team, about a piece of bi-partisan legislation that passed both the House and Senate without objection and…

The Massachusetts Appeals Court has affirmed that all employees who receive commissions as a part of their compensation packages, are entitled to the protections of the Massachusetts Wage Act. The case is Okerman v. VA Software. According to the plain language of the statute, the Massachusetts Wage Act applies “to the payment of commissions when…

On June 11, 2007, the United States Supreme Court confirmed that a Department of Labor regulation, which states that companionship workers who are employed by an employer or agency other than the family or household using their service are exempt from the provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act, is valid and binding. The decision…

The First Circuit has ruled that corporate officers may be held personally liable for a corporation’s failure to pay to pay its employees proper wages under the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”). While the district courts in the First Circuit have been willing to impose personal liability on corporate officers for years, the First Circuit…

Contrary to the belief of some computer industry executives, many IT Support Specialists are entitled to overtime for their work. The new Fair Labor Standards Act regulations, effective on August 23, 2004, created an exemption for computer employees, including systems analysts, programmers, software engineers and other similarly skilled workers. But what about the help desk…