Massachusetts Employment Law Blog

A significant gender discrimination lawsuit recently reached a proposed settlement of $3 million for 101 women working for Publicis group. The lawsuit grew out of concern by women about the public relations giant’s practices concerning equal pay, promotion and opportunities, as well as specific allegations of open gender inequity. Specific claims by the lead plaintiff…

Federal contractors are now required to provide their employees with up to 56 hours of earned sick leave per calendar year. Specific terms of the Executive order include: The order has proved somewhat controversial. Supporters say the order allows sick workers to stay away from the workplace, which decreases the chance of spreading illness. They…

It was the biggest controversy of the 2014-15 football season: Tom Brady and the New England Patriots were accused of purposely deflating footballs to gain an illegal throwing advantage.  In the initial aftermath of “Deflategate”, the NFL made the decision to discipline Brady with a four-game suspension.  The star quarterback filed an appeal through his…

Female faculty members at the University of Denver law school could be receiving a major payout if accusations by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) prove accurate. In August, the agency sent the university notification that evidence of a gender pay gap was found during a recent investigation.  According to the commission, these illegal practices…

The Securities and Exchange Commission is considering new rules and regulations for compensation claw back policies. If the proposal is adopted, it will implement specific requirements from the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, where companies listed with national securities exchanges and associations will have to develop and implement clawback policies. In general,…

The Massachusetts Attorney General released final clarifications regarding the state’s earned sick time (EST) law that goes into effect July 1, 2015. Under the new law, all employers within the state must allow workers to accrue and use up to 40 hours of earned sick time each calendar year. Some specific elements of the law…

Uber is more popular than ever in large American cities, but a serious question exists: are Uber drivers employees or independent contractors? One California judge with several Uber cases on his docket may be on the verge of answering that question. Two of the cases currently before the judge include: In June of 2015, the New…

New York recently joined the growing number of states that allow employers to pay workers with payroll debit cards. Instead of a paper check or direct deposit into a banking account, wages are placed on a payroll card for the employee to use at his leisure. Prior to this new legislation, direct deposit was the…

Many employers consider credit ratings of potential employees when making hiring decisions, as well as decisions concerning promotion and pay rates.  This practice often results in discrimination against lower income and minority applicants. The Stop Credit Discrimination in Employment Act bans the use of credit histories in employment decisions regarding potential and existing workers within…

Proposed revisions to Section 13(a)(1) of the federal Fair Labor Standards Act are coming under scrutiny as some question the Department of Labor’s (DOL) authority to create legislation. U.S. Secretary of Labor Thomas Perez recently announced that the agency submitted a proposal to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) that will potentially affect the…