In a previous QuickStudy, we reported that the Massachusetts House of Representatives had passed legislation, commonly known as the Crown Act. We noted that it remained to be seen whether the Senate would follow suit....more
On Thursday, March 17, 2022, the Massachusetts House of Representatives passed legislation, generally known as the Crown Act, to make the Commonwealth the fifteenth state to prohibit hair discrimination. The impending statute...more
On September 15, the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit issued a startling and ominous opinion construing the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) in a manner which employers should take heed. In a...more
As many already know, in the fall of 2018, Massachusetts dramatically altered its non-compete landscape. See Locke Lord QuickStudy: Meet the New Noncompete Law in Massachusetts: FAQ, linked here. Among other provisions, the...more
In an unusual procedural context, Judge Nathaniel M. Gorton of the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts sent another strong reminder to Massachusetts employers of the perils involved in drafting...more
Massachusetts courts have sent several recent reminders to employers that the courts will scrutinize discrimination and harassment allegations carefully before letting employers off the hook. Employers need to remember to...more
As the COVID-19 vaccination becomes more readily available, many employers are considering whether to require that employees be vaccinated. In December 2020, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) issued...more
5/5/2021
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Civil Rights Act ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Policies ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Title VII ,
Vaccinations ,
Workplace Safety
On December 15, we published a QuickStudy outlining considerations for employers to contemplate as COVID-19 vaccines become available. Among other factors, we suggested employers determine whether to require vaccinations, and...more
As vaccines become available to employees, what do employers need to know, what should they do, and what should they avoid?
Employers may establish legitimate health and safety requirements that are job-related and...more
Although Massachusetts employers presumably have been preparing for and complying with the Massachusetts Paid Family and Medical Leave Act (“MA PFMLA”) for more than a year, January 1 marks the date when Massachusetts...more
We do not need to tell employers about the lurking spread of the coronavirus. News reports have provided ample input into its spread and the international concerns it has generated....more
For the first time in over 60 years, the United States Department of Labor (DOL) significantly updated the standards it relies upon to determine joint-employer status under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). The new rule,...more
The Massachusetts legislature passed significant legislation (An Act Relative to Minimum Wage, Paid Family Medical Leave and the Sales Tax Holiday), which includes a number of important provisions impacting employers in...more
Click here for PDF No. The Act applies only to agreements entered into on or after October 1, 2018. Agreements entered into previously are unaffected. Pre-existing agreements do not need to be amended to comply with the new...more
As we have noted in previous Quick Studies, Massachusetts has a new non-competition law and today is the day it becomes effective. As a reminder, the key terms of this new statute are as follows:...more
In request for an opinion with potentially significant impacts for every Massachusetts employer who pays commissions to employees, Judge Richard G. Stearns of the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts...more
We are writing to let you know that the Massachusetts legislature has indeed passed new non-compete legislation. The law has been forwarded to Gov. Charlie Baker, who now has ten days in which to decide whether or not to...more
As the current legislative session in Massachusetts winds to a close, legislation regulating non-competition agreements is again in the legislative oven. Whether it will be baked before the session wraps up remains to be...more
The Massachusetts legislature last week passed significant legislation (“An Act Relative to Minimum Wage, Paid Family Medical Leave and the Sales Tax Holiday”) which includes a number of important provisions impacting...more
As you undoubtedly know, the amendments to the Massachusetts Equal pay Act (“MEPA”), effective July 1, provide that “[n]o employer shall discriminate in any way on the basis of gender in the payment of wages, or pay any...more
This is a quick reminder that in Massachusetts, the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act will become effective on April 1. In essence, the MPWFA forbids those who employ six or more employees from denying reasonable accommodations...more
A recent opinion of federal Judge Timothy Hillman sends a message to employers in Massachusetts that providing references on behalf of former employees is a dangerous practice.
In Soni v. Wespiser et al, Judge Hillman...more
Drafting Employment Applications in Massachusetts -
Massachusetts Job Application Requirements -
Several Massachusetts laws govern the information that employers must include in their written job applications....more
1/26/2017
/ At-Will Employment ,
Background Checks ,
Criminal Background Checks ,
Employee Restrooms ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Contract ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Job Applicants ,
Minimum Wage ,
Religious Discrimination ,
Sealed Records ,
Transgender ,
Wage and Hour
When an employer is put on notice of workplace sexual harassment, it must take adequate steps to investigate and take proper remedial action or risk punitive damages. That is the import of a recent ruling by the...more