Tag Archives: Massachusetts

Massachusetts Federal Court Denies Motion to Dismiss Defamation Claim After Employee is Escorted Out of Work Following Termination

Posted on February 4, 2021 by Ashlyn Dowd

By: Jonathan Sigel, Esq. and Ashlyn Dowd, Esq. The Federal District Court of Massachusetts recently denied a defendant company’s motion to dismiss a defamation claim following the termination of the company’s Vice President. The plaintiff former employee, Sandra Madden, was … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged Defamation, Massachusetts | Leave a comment

Link Fixed! Minimum Wage Increases to $13.50 Per Hour While Holiday and Sunday Premium Pay for Retail Employees Continues Down The Path To Abolishment

Posted on January 22, 2021 by Brian Casaceli

As of January 1, 2021, the minimum wage for regular employees (i.e., non-tipped minimum wage employees) increased to $13.50 per hour. The minimum wage is scheduled to increase twice more, to $14.25 and $15.00 per hour, on January 1, 2022 … Continue reading →

Posted in Minimum Wage | Tagged Grand Bargain, Holiday Pay, Massachusetts, Minimum Wage, Premium Pay | Leave a comment

COVID-19 Related Updates for Massachusetts Employers

Posted on December 23, 2020 by Amanda Marie Baer

New COVID Relief Bill On Monday, December 21, 2020 the United States Congress passed the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021, which includes several provisions aimed at providing COVID-19 relief (the “Relief Bill”). As public employers and employers with less than 500 … Continue reading →

Posted in COVID-19 | Tagged COVID-19, FFCRA, Massachusetts, Relief BIll | 2 Comments

Massachusetts’ Sector Specific Workplace Safety Standards for Office Spaces Updated

Posted on December 14, 2020 by Amanda Marie Baer

Governor Baker’s administration updated Massachusetts’ Sector Specific Workplace Specific Safety Standards for Office Spaces to Address COVID-19 (the “Standards”). While all employers operating office spaces are advised to review the complete Standards, key provisions are: Face coverings: workers and visitors … Continue reading →

Posted in COVID-19 | Tagged COVID-19, Massachusetts, Office, Safety Standards | Leave a comment

What does the December 8th Rollback Mean for Massachusetts Employers?

Posted on December 10, 2020 by Amanda Marie Baer

On December 8, 2020, Governor Charles Baker issued COVID-19 Order No. 58, which returns all of Massachusetts to Step 1 of Phase 3 of the Commonwealth’s reopening plan, effective December 13, 2020. As a result, all “Phase 3, Step 2” … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged COVID-19, Massachusetts | Leave a comment

Update: Families First Coronavirus Act

Posted on March 30, 2020 by Amanda Marie Baer

The Department of Labor issued new guidance over the weekend regarding the Families First Act, including important definitions and clarifications. I broke down the new guidance into the overall framework of the new EFMLA and EPSLA in this recorded webinar. … Continue reading →

Posted in COVID-19, DOL, Employment Discrimination, FMLA, Leave Laws | Tagged Coronavirus, COVID-19, Department of Labor, Department of Labor; DOL; Overtime; Final Rule; White Collar Exemption; Salary Threshold; HCE Threshold, Discrimination, Employment, FMLA, Massachusetts, Paid Family and Medical Leave | 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

The Summer of Noncompete Reform: Three Other New England States Get In On the Act – Part 2

Posted on September 19, 2019 by Rich Van Nostrand

Following the Massachusetts legislature’s attempt at reform of the use of employee noncompetition agreements last summer, three other New England states – New Hampshire, Maine and Rhode Island –passed their own noncompetition agreement reform bills in the summer of 2019. … Continue reading →

Posted in Employment Agreements, Non-Competition Agreements, Uncategorized | Tagged Employment, Employment Agreements, Massachusetts, Non-Competition Agreements, noncompete | Leave a comment

The Summer of Noncompete Reform: Three Other New England States Get In On the Act – Part 1

Posted on September 9, 2019 by Rich Van Nostrand

Most readers are probably aware that the Massachusetts legislature, after a decade of starts and stops, passed a very detailed bill retaining but reforming the use of employee noncompetition agreements last summer. While we were the first New England state … Continue reading →

Posted in Employment Agreements, Non-Competition Agreements | Tagged Employment, Employment Agreements, Massachusetts, Non-Competition Agreements, noncompete | Leave a comment

More News on the Noncompete Front: Employers Should Still Expect Strict Scrutiny of Their Restrictive Covenant Agreements

Posted on July 22, 2019 by Rich Van Nostrand

In earlier posts, I reported on the passage of the new Massachusetts Noncompetition Agreement Act, which took effect on October 1, 2018. That Act significantly changed the law in this area, narrowing the permissible protections and imposing several new requirements … Continue reading →

Posted in Non-Competition Agreements | Tagged Massachusetts, Non-Competition Agreements, noncompete | Leave a comment