Saturday, May 13, 2017

Massachusetts Private Employees are Not Entitled to Paid Vacation Time, But If It Is A Benefit Offered By An Employer, Accrued Unused Time Must Be Paid Out Upon Separation

Although Massachusetts private employers are not required to grant vacation time to their employees, many do as benefit to employment. When an employer decides to offer paid vacation time they must be aware that the vacation time accrued or earned under an oral or written agreement with the employee is treated the same as an earned wage under the Massachusetts Wage Act. Therefore, when an employee separates from his/her employer, the employer must determine how many vacation days are accrued, and unused, and the employer must include the accrued, unused vacation pay in the final payment of wages to the employee. When an employee is involuntarily discharged, this means that accrued, unused vacation time must be paid out, along with any other accrued wage, at the time of termination.

Massachusetts Private Employees are Not Entitled to Paid Vacation Time

Although an employer cannot enter into a special contract with an employee that would have the effect of exempting the employer from having to pay out the accrued, unused vacation time to an employee, the employer may limit its exposure to pay out unused vacation time by implementing a “use it or lose it” policy that requires employees to use all of their accumulated vacation time by a certain date or forfeit all or part of it or by capping the amount of vacation time an employee may accrue or earn. If the employer decides to implement one of these policies to limit its exposure to payout vacation, these policies must be in writing.

Baker, Braverman & Barbadoro, P.C. recommends that employers have a yearly review of its employee handbook to make sure that company policies are compliant with the ever changing laws governing employee earned time. Additionally we suggest that prior to terminating an employee, if there are any question or hesitation as to what is owed to the employee, that you consult an employment attorney to avoid violating the Massachusetts Wage Act, as such violations can result in treble damages. – Susan M. Molinari.



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Tuesday, May 9, 2017

Checkup For Your Docs

As a litigation attorney at Baker, Braverman & Barbadoro, P.C., I am often asked to review documents after a problem arises with an employee, partner, shareholder, vendor or deceased relative.  More often than not, I am explaining to the client that the documents that will serve to control the path of the litigation are outdated or ambiguous.  Business owners and individuals know what they want to control in their professional and personal lives.  They usually tell their partners, employees or loved ones what their wishes are, but over the course of time the operative documents don’t always match their expectations.  Only when an unexpected event occurs does the problem usually come to light, for example when a partnership or LLC breaks up or becomes dysfunctional; a loved one passes and his or her business is not mentioned in their will; or a key employee leaves and takes a substantial amount of the company’s business with them.  These, and many other scenarios, are common occurrences and should be expected in the course of one’s professional and business lives.  Unfortunately, however, too few of us are prepared for them.

Legal Documents Litigation Attorneys

At Baker, Braverman & Barbadoro, P.C., our corporate, estate planning and real estate attorneys strive to make clients aware of the necessity of having all their important documents up to date.  That way if you have to consult with any of our litigation attorneys, you will not be a victim of your own documents. – Paul N. Barbadoro.



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