Articles Posted in department of labor

Terminated employees may. In an effort to avoid their obligations under the Massachusetts Wage Act (“Wage Act”), many employers now condition the payment of commission on continued employment.  Sometimes those same employers the fire employees to avoid the commissions because the employee was not working when the commission came due.  This may no longer work.…

Au pairs areprotected. Many families in Massachusetts use au pairs to care for their children.  The United States Department of State (“DOS”) administers this “Au Pair Program,” whereby foreign nationals obtain a special type of visa and are placed with host families in the United States, so that the foreign nationals may provide in-home childcare…

Are inside salespersons who are paid 100% commission, entitled to overtime pay and Sunday Pay.  In short, yes. Overtime pay for inside sales work. On May 8, 2019, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court (“SJC”) issued guidance for all employees in Massachusetts who are inside salespersons and receive payment on a 100% commission basis.  In Sullivan…

Employees who settle cases. Employers work hard to make sure employees can’t hire their own lawyers. One way to do that is to make sure employee-side lawyers cannot get paid, and that typically means fighting the court award of attorney’s fees. An interesting question arose recently. Is an employee who settles a case under the Wage Act…

Union workers may lose. It has been long thought that union members would still have the protections of the Massachusetts Wage Act.  That our laws set a floor below which unions and employers could not dip below.  While some trial court judges have dismissed those protections, allowing unions and their employers to negotiate away rights…

Lawyers Weekly interviewed Philip Gordon for an article concerning the Attorney General’s new Pay Equity Guidance. (View Article) Gordon Interviewed About Pay Equity Law: Key Insights on Massachusetts’ Equal Pay Act In a recent interview, Gordon of Gordon Law Group shared valuable insights about the Massachusetts Equal Pay Act and its growing importance in the…

Fish rots from the head down. Philip Gordon was interviewed by the Brockton Enterprise concerning a new report released by the City of Brockton attempting to second guess the landmark $4M jury verdict awarded to Gordon Law Group’s client, Russell Lopes, for outrageous acts of discrimination and retaliation. Since that verdict, the City commissioned a…

The DOL has made it easier for employers to avoid paying interns by abandoning their six-part test for distinguishing between interns and employees. The updated fact sheet was released today. You may view it here. DOL Changes Rules on Unpaid Internships: What Employers Need to Know In a move that will have significant implications for…

Kendall Buhl interviewed Philip Gordon for his program: More Boston-Area Women Executives Saying “Me Too” (Listen) Gordon Interviewed on WBZ NewsRadio About Workplace Sexual Harassment: Key Insights and Legal Advice In a recent interview on WBZ NewsRadio, Gordon of Gordon Law Group shared his expertise on workplace sexual harassment and the legal rights of employees…

New yorks highest court. In its latest ruling under the New York City Human Rights Law (NYCHRL), New York’s highest court clarified the standard for plaintiffs to obtain punitive damages. In a landmark ruling, the Court held that “the standard for determining punitive damages under the NYCHRL is whether the wrongdoer has engaged in discrimination…