Massachusetts Wage Act

Subscribe to Massachusetts Wage Act

An employee’s entitlement to incentive compensation continues to be a litigation issue. Recently, a Massachusetts federal district court held that an employer’s refusal to award an employee a discretionary bonus does not violate the Massachusetts Wage Act. Comley v. Media Planning Grp., No. 14-10032, 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 76383 (D. Mass. June…

Rejecting a legal theory widely accepted in many jurisdictions, namely that statutory wage-and-hour laws are intended to preempt claims for alleged unpaid compensation brought pursuant to older, less-specific common law theories, the Massachusetts Supreme Court ruled last month that an employee whose wage claims may well be time barred under the Massachusetts Wage Act can…

In two decisions issued this spring, the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts, reversed decisions issued by Massachusetts lower courts and broadly interpreted the scope of Massachusetts wage law with respect to its extra-territorial reach and potential individual liability for violations. Taylor v. Eastern Connection Operating, Inc., 465 Mass. 191 (Mass. 2013); Cook v. Patient …

While it is generally understood that decisions of courts apply retroactively (as interpretations of the law) while newly enacted statutes do not (as pronouncements of new law) unless expressly provided by the statutory language, challenges to these principles often arise, especially when the decision or enactment modifies recoverable damages. In a victory for employers, Massachusetts’ highest…