Category Archives: Employee Benefits

Don’t Delay: MA Employers Are Now Strictly Liable for Three Times the Amount of Wages for Late Payments With No Safe Harbor for Paying in Full Prior to Suit!

Posted on April 8, 2022 by Jonathan Sigel

Under the Massachusetts Wage Act (the “Wage Act”), if an employee voluntarily quits their employment, the employer must pay the employee their final wages, including any earned, unused vacation pay, on the employer’s next regular pay day. However, when an employee … Continue reading →

Posted in Employee Benefits, SJC, Wages | Tagged Employment, Massachusetts, SJC, Wages | Leave a comment

OSHA’s COVID-19 Vaccination and Testing Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) – Temporarily Blocked

Posted on November 11, 2021 by Ashlyn Dowd

As part of President Biden’s “Path Out of the Pandemic” COVID-19 plan, the Biden Administration instructed the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (“OSHA”) to promulgate an Emergency Temporary Standard (the “ETS”) regarding mandatory vaccinations or weekly … Continue reading →

Posted in COVID-19, Employee Benefits, OSHA | Tagged COVID-19, OSHA | Leave a comment

Massachusetts COVID-19 Emergency Paid Sick Leave – Benefits Extended

Posted on October 1, 2021 by Reid Wakefield

As employers know, in May 2021, Massachusetts passed a law, “An Act providing for Massachusetts COVID-19 emergency paid sick leave,” which requires employers to provide employees up to 40 hours of paid leave for reasons related to the effects of … Continue reading →

Posted in COVID-19, Employee Benefits | Tagged Benefits, COVID-19, Emergency Paid Sick Leave, Massachusetts | Leave a comment

Employer Tax Credits for Employee Paid Leave Due to COVID-19 Applies to Government Entities

Posted on April 30, 2021 by Ashlyn Dowd

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) recently published guidance defining “Eligible Employer” for purposes of the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA) tax credits. Under ARPA, certain employers can claim refundable tax credits that reimburse them for the costs of providing … Continue reading →

Posted in COVID-19, Employee Benefits, IRS, Leave Laws, municipalities | Tagged COVID-19, IRS, Municipalties, Paid Leave | Leave a comment

American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 and the anticipated Massachusetts COVID-19 Emergency Paid Leave

Posted on April 21, 2021 by Brian Casaceli

In lieu of our annual Employment Law Seminar, Mirick O’Connell’s Labor, Employment and Employee Benefits attorneys are hosting a Spring Webinar Series focusing on hot topics in employment law. Attorney Kim Rozak and I presented the second program in the … Continue reading →

Posted in American Rescue Plan Act, COVID-19, Employee Benefits, Leave Laws | Tagged American Rescue Plan, Emergency Paid Sick Leave, webinar | Leave a comment

Paid Family and Medical Leave is Right Around the Corner!

Posted on December 10, 2020 by Corey Higgins

Beginning on January 1, 2021, covered individuals in the Commonwealth will be eligible to begin using Paid Family and Medical Leave (“PFML”). Under the law – which was enacted in 2018 as part of the so-called “Grand Bargain” between the … Continue reading →

Posted in Employee Benefits, Employee Handbooks, FMLA | Leave a comment

The Coronavirus and Its Impact on the Workplace

Posted on March 11, 2020 by Brian Casaceli

With cases of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) significantly on the rise, the World Health Organization declaring the coronavirus outbreak a pandemic, and Governor Baker recently declaring a state of emergency in the Commonwealth, employers should be prepared to address a number … Continue reading →

Posted in Employee Benefits, Employment Discrimination, FMLA, Leave Laws | Tagged CDC, COVID-19, Employment, Massachusetts, OSHA | Leave a comment

MA Paid Family and Medical Leave Act

Posted on July 16, 2019 by Jonathan Sigel

On June 14th, we reported that Massachusetts delayed the implementation of the payroll tax under the Family and Medical Leave law by three months (i.e., until October 1, 2019). At the time, the government informed the public that the contribution rate … Continue reading →

Posted in Employee Benefits, FMLA, Leave Laws, Wages | Tagged Employee Benefits, Employment, FMLA, Massachusetts, Paid Family and Medical Leave | Leave a comment

Massachusetts Employers: Don’t Forget to Submit the New HIRD Form by November 30

Posted on November 15, 2018 by Amanda Marie Baer

All Massachusetts employers with six or more employees must submit a Health Insurance Responsibility Disclosure form (“HIRD Form”) to MassHealth through the MassTaxConnect web portal by November 30, 2018. In November 2017, Massachusetts amended Chapter 118E of the General Laws … Continue reading →

Posted in Employee Benefits | Tagged health insurance, health insurance responsibility disclosure, HIRD, HIRD Form, MassHealth, MassTaxConnect | Leave a comment

Governor Baker Signs “Grand Bargain” Bill Creating Paid Family and Medical Leave and Raising Minimum Wage

Posted on July 10, 2018 by Brian Casaceli

On June 28, 2018, Governor Baker signed “An Act Relative to Minimum Wage, Paid Family Medical Leave and the Sales Tax Holiday” making Massachusetts one of very few states in the country to require employers to provide paid family and … Continue reading →

Posted in Employee Benefits, FMLA, Leave Laws, Minimum Wage, Premium Pay | Tagged Paid Family and Medical Leave | Comments Off