Most Massachusetts employment laws cover only one category of worker: employee. Non-employees, like independent contractors and volunteers, are not covered.

Yes. Massachusetts is an at-will employment state, which means that an employee relationship can be terminated at any time with or without cause. Parties can modify an employee’s at-will status by entering an employment contract for a fixed term or an indefinite term conditioning termination on a certain event occurring (e.g., termination only for cause).

There are no specific requirements in Massachusetts. An employment contract does not even have to be in writing. However, it is common to have a written agreement, typically in the form of an offer letter. Terms often include the nature of the employment relationship (e.g., at-will or fixed-term), classification of the position (e.g., exempt or non-exempt from overtime pay), rate of pay, vacation or paid time off benefit, sick leave, health insurance and/or other benefits, and choice of law and forum provisions. The contract may also include non-disclosure, non-competition and/or non-solicitation provisions. If non-competition provisions are included Massachusetts law requires various contract requirements, including time limits to review and co-signing by both parties. G.L. c. 149, § 24L.

In some respects yes, in other respects no. Part-time employees are covered by wage, overtime and anti-discrimination laws, for example. However, part-time employees do not have to be covered by an employer’s health insurance.

Employment contracts are assignable. Massachusetts employers typically include language in employment agreements specifying that the contract is assignable and binding on successors.

None, unless such rights are negotiated into an employment agreement. This is uncommon except for senior executives.

No enforceable right. Massachusetts passed a change-of-control law, G.L. c. 149, § 183, requiring severance pay in certain situations. However, the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit ruled that this statute was unenforceable since it was preempted by the federal Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 ("ERISA Law").

For at-will employees, an employer can generally make unilateral prospective changes to employees’ terms of employment. Certain exceptions apply. For instance, under G.L. c. 149, § 24L, employers cannot require an employee to sign a non-competition agreement after employment begins, unless additional consideration is provided for the agreement. The rules are different if the employee has an employment agreement that contains binding terms.

Yes, employment is presumed to be at-will in Massachusetts. Employers can terminate an at-will employee at any time without cause and with no severance or other remuneration obligations.

Typically there are no remedies for dismissal without cause or wrongful termination. There are exceptions. For instance, employees can seek remedies if they are terminated in violation of public policy (e.g., terminating an employee who refused to perform an illegal act) or based on their protected status, such as their race, gender, or religion.

Yes, many Massachusetts laws, such as the anti-discrimination statute and payment of wages statute, include provisions protecting employees who make whistleblower claims. Under these statutes, it is unlawful for an employer to retaliate against an employee who makes a complaint to the state agency responsible for enforcement.  Additionally, there are a variety of whistleblower protections under federal law, such as the Dodd Frank Act (securities law) and OSHA (workplace health and safety).

Yes. Courts have interpreted the state’s general right to privacy statute, G.L. c. 214, § 1B, to apply to the workplace. Courts balance the employer’s legitimate business interest in taking an action against the degree of intrusion on the employee’s privacy. Courts can order specific performance (e.g., end an unlawful policy) or award damages.

Yes, under G.L. c. 151B employees cannot be discriminated against on the basis of race, color, religious creed, national origin, ancestry, sex, gender identity, age, certain criminal records, handicap (disability), mental illness, pregnancy, sexual orientation, active military personnel status, and/or genetics.

Employees have no statutory right to vacation, but if vacation is provided, it is treated as earned wages under state law and cannot be forfeited. Under the federal Family Medical Leave Act ("FMLA") employees working for covered employers are eligible for up to 12 weeks of unpaid medical leave per year to care for their own or a family member’s serious medical condition, including parental leave for both mothers and fathers.

The FMLA covers employers with 50 or more employees working within a 75-mile radius. Employers can, but do not have to, pay for some/all of this leave. Massachusetts provides additional leave benefits in addition to what is available under federal law. Under Massachusetts law, employees are entitled to up to forty hours of sick time per year, which can be used for the employees’ own or their eligible family members’ medical care. Sick time must be paid if the employee works for an employer with 11 or more employees. Also under Massachusetts law, employees (mothers and fathers) working for an employer with six or more employees are eligible to get up to eight weeks of parental leave for childbirth, adoption, or fostering a child. The leave may be paid and may run concurrently with federal leave under the Family Medical Leave Act.  

Additionally, starting on January 1, 2021, under the Massachusetts Paid Family Medical Leave Act, most employees will be eligible to get up to twelve weeks of paid family leave and up to 20 weeks of paid medical leave. This leave benefit, which will be administered and paid out by a state agency, will be funded by premiums paid by employers and employees. Employers must have started to contribute to this leave program as of October 1, 2019. See G.L. c.175M as added by St. 2018, c.121.

Restrictive covenants are recognized in Massachusetts, but may only be enforced if the terms are no broader than necessary to protect the employer's legitimate business interests (trade secrets, confidential information, goodwill). In August 2018, the Massachusetts Noncompetition Agreement Act, G.L. c. 149, § 24L (“MNAA”), went into effect. This law applies only to non-competition agreements, not other agreements like non-solicitation and non-disclosure agreements. Non-competition agreements entered after October 1, 2018, cannot exceed twelve months.

Yes, employees can be terminated for refusing to sign a restrictive covenant. For restrictive covenants not governed by the MNAA, valid consideration can be anything of value not already owed to the employee, including continued employment. For non-competition agreements subject to the MNAA, the agreement must contain either a garden leave clause or a mutually agreed-upon consideration. A garden leave clause requires that the employer pay the employee at least 50% of the employee’s highest annualized base salary paid by the employer within the two years preceding the employee’s termination. Because the MNAA is new, Massachusetts courts have yet to define what “mutually-agreed upon consideration” consists of.

No, Massachusetts does not require contributions to a pension or retirement scheme. 

There are no Massachusetts requirements to provide benefits, such as health insurance, to employees. Federal law requires that employers with 50 or more full-time employees offer health insurance to their employees.

In most cases, no. Under the federal Age Discrimination in Employment Act and the Massachusetts state equivalent, G.L. c. 151B, it is unlawful discrimination to require employees to retire at a particular age. There are limited exceptions for executives and high policymakers.

Generally no, however, after the age of 65, employees usually have the choice to get Medicare, a federal health benefit, either in combination with the employer plan or in place of it.

There are no specific federal or Massachusetts laws that would prevent an employer from requiring COVID-19 vaccines as a condition of employment, or that would prohibit the employer from firing an employee because s/he does not want to get the vaccine. In general, however, employers must reasonably accommodate employees with bona fide religious beliefs or disabilities, and this duty would apply to vaccines.

Yes, in general, an employer can require a return to the office, and terminate an employee who refuses, subject to providing a safe and healthy working environment. Employers also have a legal obligation to engage in an interactive process to determine a reasonable accommodation for employees with a disability.