Work & The Law

Unpaid Overtime Class Action Granted Class Certification

The U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts has granted class certification of a group of “fresh department managers” who worked for Hannaford Brothers grocery store and are seeking to recover unpaid overtime and Sunday pay compensation. United States District Court, District of Massachusetts SUMMARY: (court decision – opens in PDF) “Judith Prinzo (‘Prinzo’) requests that this Court certify

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Overtime Wages – Medical Transportation

You may be owed overtime compensation if you are a driver for a non-emergency medical transportation company in Massachusetts. Many companies in Massachusetts hire workers to drive individuals to non-emergency medical appointments and to various clinics throughout the state, but often classify these individuals as independent contractors in order to avoid paying overtime. In all likelihood, this is illegal. If

Read More »

Unpaid Overtime: Salary Alone Is Not Enough

Do you not get paid overtime because your employer pays you a salary? One of the most common misconceptions that I come across are employees who think they are not entitled to be paid overtime because they are paid on a salary. Stated simply; salary alone is not enough to exempt you from overtime. In order for your employer to

Read More »

Independent Contractor Misclassification: Lawsuit Filed Against Transportation Company

Have you been misclassified as an independent contractor? On March 17, 2017, Attorney Adam J. Shafran and Rudolph Friedmann LLP filed a class action lawsuit against Smart Transportation, Inc. and related companies (“Smart”) to recover damages on behalf of a class of drivers who alleged they were misclassified as independent contractors by Smart. Smart is a non-emergency medical transportation company

Read More »

Unpaid Prevailing Wages: Lawsuit Filed Against Utility Metering Solutions

On November 23, 2016 Attorney Adam J. Shafran and Rudolph Friedmann LLP filed a class action lawsuit against Xtralight Manufacturing, Ltd. d/b/a Utility Metering Solutions (“UMS”) for unpaid prevailing wages, overtime wages and unreimbursed transportation expenses. On December 2, 2016, 25 additional UMS employees were added to the lawsuit as named-plaintiffs who also allege that they have not been paid

Read More »

New Overtime Regulations – Is Your Company Ready?

Beginning on December 1, 2016, nearly 5 million employees will now be eligible for overtime compensation under new regulations issued by the United States Department of Labor, marking the first change in these laws since the 1970’s.  Currently, executive, administrative and professional employees earning a salary of more than $23,660 per year are not eligible to receive overtime compensation when

Read More »

Massachusetts Overtime Law – Restaurant Worker Exception

Massachusetts overtime law (G.L.c. 151, §1A) requires employers to pay their employees a rate no less than one and one half their regular rate after working longer than forty hours in one week. There are several exceptions including workers employed in a hotel, motel, motor court or like establishment, and in a restaurant.

Read More »

Supreme Court Rules Against Employee Compensation For Security Screens

Workers at Amazon warehouses may face up to 25-minute security screenings aimed at preventing theft. The workers sued their employer seeking compensation for the time spent waiting to go through the security screening at the end of each day. The issue before the Supreme Court was whether such time is compensable under the Fair Labor Standards Act, the federal law

Read More »

Keeping Overtime Pay in Compliance with the Prevailing Wage Law

Employers often create complicated payroll formulas to calculate overtime pay for employees who work under public work contracts to comply with Massachusetts’ prevailing wage law. The prevailing wage law (M.G.L. c. 149, § 26-27) governs public works contracts in Massachusetts and mandates a wage rate established by the director of the Massachusetts Department of Labor, the “prevailing wage,” which must

Read More »

Mandatory Treble Damages in Wage Act Claims

A 2008 Amendment to the Massachusetts Wage Act simplified the award of treble damages in wage act violation cases. The amendment takes discretion away from the court and makes treble damages a mandatory award. “An employee so aggrieved who prevails in such an action shall be awarded treble damages, as liquidated damages, for any lost wages and other benefits and

Read More »

Unpaid Overtime Class Action Granted Class Certification

The U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts has granted class certification of a group of “fresh department managers” who worked for Hannaford Brothers grocery store and are seeking to recover unpaid overtime and Sunday pay compensation. United States District Court, District of Massachusetts SUMMARY: (court decision – opens in PDF) “Judith Prinzo (‘Prinzo’) requests that this Court certify

Read More »

Overtime Wages – Medical Transportation

You may be owed overtime compensation if you are a driver for a non-emergency medical transportation company in Massachusetts. Many companies in Massachusetts hire workers to drive individuals to non-emergency medical appointments and to various clinics throughout the state, but often classify these individuals as independent contractors in order to avoid paying overtime. In all likelihood, this is illegal. If

Read More »

Unpaid Overtime: Salary Alone Is Not Enough

Do you not get paid overtime because your employer pays you a salary? One of the most common misconceptions that I come across are employees who think they are not entitled to be paid overtime because they are paid on a salary. Stated simply; salary alone is not enough to exempt you from overtime. In order for your employer to

Read More »

Independent Contractor Misclassification: Lawsuit Filed Against Transportation Company

Have you been misclassified as an independent contractor? On March 17, 2017, Attorney Adam J. Shafran and Rudolph Friedmann LLP filed a class action lawsuit against Smart Transportation, Inc. and related companies (“Smart”) to recover damages on behalf of a class of drivers who alleged they were misclassified as independent contractors by Smart. Smart is a non-emergency medical transportation company

Read More »

Unpaid Prevailing Wages: Lawsuit Filed Against Utility Metering Solutions

On November 23, 2016 Attorney Adam J. Shafran and Rudolph Friedmann LLP filed a class action lawsuit against Xtralight Manufacturing, Ltd. d/b/a Utility Metering Solutions (“UMS”) for unpaid prevailing wages, overtime wages and unreimbursed transportation expenses. On December 2, 2016, 25 additional UMS employees were added to the lawsuit as named-plaintiffs who also allege that they have not been paid

Read More »

New Overtime Regulations – Is Your Company Ready?

Beginning on December 1, 2016, nearly 5 million employees will now be eligible for overtime compensation under new regulations issued by the United States Department of Labor, marking the first change in these laws since the 1970’s.  Currently, executive, administrative and professional employees earning a salary of more than $23,660 per year are not eligible to receive overtime compensation when

Read More »

Massachusetts Overtime Law – Restaurant Worker Exception

Massachusetts overtime law (G.L.c. 151, §1A) requires employers to pay their employees a rate no less than one and one half their regular rate after working longer than forty hours in one week. There are several exceptions including workers employed in a hotel, motel, motor court or like establishment, and in a restaurant.

Read More »

Supreme Court Rules Against Employee Compensation For Security Screens

Workers at Amazon warehouses may face up to 25-minute security screenings aimed at preventing theft. The workers sued their employer seeking compensation for the time spent waiting to go through the security screening at the end of each day. The issue before the Supreme Court was whether such time is compensable under the Fair Labor Standards Act, the federal law

Read More »

Keeping Overtime Pay in Compliance with the Prevailing Wage Law

Employers often create complicated payroll formulas to calculate overtime pay for employees who work under public work contracts to comply with Massachusetts’ prevailing wage law. The prevailing wage law (M.G.L. c. 149, § 26-27) governs public works contracts in Massachusetts and mandates a wage rate established by the director of the Massachusetts Department of Labor, the “prevailing wage,” which must

Read More »

Mandatory Treble Damages in Wage Act Claims

A 2008 Amendment to the Massachusetts Wage Act simplified the award of treble damages in wage act violation cases. The amendment takes discretion away from the court and makes treble damages a mandatory award. “An employee so aggrieved who prevails in such an action shall be awarded treble damages, as liquidated damages, for any lost wages and other benefits and

Read More »