Massachusetts Wage Act FAQs
Understanding the Massachusetts Wage Act: FAQs and Legal RequirementsThe Massachusetts Wage Act governs the timely payment of wages, final pay requirements at termination, required sick time under state law, proper classification of employees, and more.
If an employer violates the Wage Act, Massachusetts law requires that they pay treble damages. That means a $1,000 mistake in failing to pay for a week's vacation could become a $3,000 liability. The law also requires that the employer reimburse the employee for attorneys fees and costs if the employee wins a wage claim. This may sound simple, but there are many different situations that can arise under the Wage Act, and how it may apply to any of those situations is not always obvious. Below are some frequently asked questions, and links to the answers, about the Massachusetts Wage Act and minimum wage law requirements. |
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What Are the Massachusetts Wage and Hour Laws
What is the Massachusetts Wage Act?
What is the difference between the Wage Act and the minimum wage laws?
Who is covered by the Wage Act?
Is my classification as an independent contractor legal?
What is the difference between the Wage Act and the minimum wage laws?
Who is covered by the Wage Act?
Is my classification as an independent contractor legal?
What Wages Are Required to be Paid
Are commissions considered wages under the Wage Act?
Is vacation pay considered wages?
What travel time is paid time?
Do wage and hour laws apply to "on call" time?
Can I be paid only on a commission basis?
What wages have to be paid at termination?
Is vacation pay considered wages?
What travel time is paid time?
Do wage and hour laws apply to "on call" time?
Can I be paid only on a commission basis?
What wages have to be paid at termination?
Massachusetts Minimum Wage
What is the Massachusetts minimum wage in 2022?
Is there a small business exemption for minimum wage laws?
What is the minimum wage for tipped employees?
What are the rules about tip pooling?
Who is exempt from Minimum Wage?
Is there a small business exemption for minimum wage laws?
What is the minimum wage for tipped employees?
What are the rules about tip pooling?
Who is exempt from Minimum Wage?
Late Payment of Wages
Wage Deductions and Changes to Compensation
Can my employer reduce my wages or commissions?
What can be legally deducted from my paycheck?
What happens to accrued vacation if my employer changes the vacation policy?
What happens to my past commissions if my employer changes the commission policy?
What can be legally deducted from my paycheck?
What happens to accrued vacation if my employer changes the vacation policy?
What happens to my past commissions if my employer changes the commission policy?
Remedies for Wage and Hour Violations
Questions About the Payment of Wages or Commissions?
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Meet Our Employment Lawyers
Emily Smith-Lee is the owner and founder of slnlaw. She is a 1996 graduate of Boston College Law School. She was previously a partner at the Boston office of a large international firm, where she worked for thirteen years before starting the firm that became slnlaw in 2009. She has been recognized as a Massachusetts Superlawyer each year since 2013, and in 2018 earned recognition as one of Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly's Lawyers of the Year. She has written a book on employment law: Rules of the Road, What You Need to Know About Employment Laws in Massachusetts, and helped thousands of clients on both the employee and employer side with issues relating to wage and hour laws, including overtime pay, late or unpaid wages or commissions, employee misclassification, and retaliation against employees asserting rights under the wage and hour laws.
Rebecca Rogers: Rebecca is a 2006 graduate of Boston College Law School, and has worked with slnlaw since 2013. She previously worked as an intellectual property litigation attorney for Fish & Richardson in Boston, Massachusetts, and clerked for the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court. Rebecca has helped clients with wage and hour disputes, including employee misclassification, late or unpaid wages or commissions, retaliation under the Wage Act, and advice to both employees and employers about wage and hour law compliance.
Jenna Ordway: Jenna is a 2013 graduate of Quinnipiac Law School, and also earned an LLM in Taxation from Boston University in 2015. She has been affiliated with slnlaw since 2011, first as a law clerk and then as an attorney. Jenna has been recognized since 2019 as a "Rising Star" by Massachusetts Superlawyers. Jenna has helped clients assess their rights under the wage and hour laws, including employee misclassification, untimely payment of final wages, late or unpaid commissions, retaliation, and advice to small business owners about wage and hour law compliance.
Elijah Bresley: Eli is a 2014 graduate of Seton Hall Law school, and has worked with slnlaw since 2020. He previously worked for a boutique employment law firm outside of Boston, and then for the Labor and Employment department of a large Boston firm. He also spent a year clerking for the judges of the Superior Court in Hartford, Connecticut. Eli has helped clients with wage and hour claims, including late or unpaid commissions, retaliation, employee misclassification, and overtime, and litigated these claims in state and federal courts. He also advises employers about employment policies and wage and hour compliance.
Sharleen Tinnin: Sharleen is a 2010 graduate of Northeastern University School of Law, and has been with slnlaw since 2023. Prior to joining slnlaw, she worked with King, Tilden, McEttrick & Brink, P.C. on complex civil litigation matters. She previously worked for the United States Department of Justice, and received an "Excellence in Justice" award in 2017. Sharleen has helped clients with multiple wage and hour issues, including retaliation, misclassification, and late or unpaid wages or commissions, and litigated these claims in state and federal courts.
How We Can Help
We can help you navigate these issues and get clarity on your rights and obligations under the Massachusetts and federal wage and hour laws. You can use the button below to schedule a call back from a member of our team to learn more about how we can help, or give us a call at 781-784-2322.
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