HD 979 creates a tax incentive for benefit corporations in Massachusetts that provide specific employee benefits. It offers a 1.5% lower corporate tax rate to qualifying benefit corporations that provide at least four of six listed benefits, including a "living wage" (defined as sufficient for essentials like housing and healthcare per the MIT calculator), paid parental leave, flexible spending accounts, a CEO-to-worker pay ratio under 25:1, employee cooperative governance, or profit sharing returning 10% of profits to staff. To qualify, corporations must maintain these benefits for 12 consecutive months and receive certification from the Department of Revenue. This directly affects benefit corporations operating under Chapter 156E that meet the eligibility criteria.
SD 773 allows employees to take unpaid leave to attend Probate and Family Court for parenting-related matters, including divorce, custody, paternity, and enforcement of family court orders. It directly affects employees needing court time for parental rights or responsibilities. The bill permits employees to use accrued paid leave (vacation, personal, or sick leave) instead of unpaid leave, though employers aren't required to provide paid leave where they normally wouldn't. Employees must give employers reasonable notice (7 days if foreseeable) and may need court-related documentation. The Attorney General enforces the law, with violations subject to standard penalties.
This bill requires private railroad companies, their contractors, and the rail and transit division of the Massachusetts Department of Transportation (when providing rail service) to provide earned sick time to their workers. It mandates compliance with the existing minimum sick leave standards outlined in Section 148c of Chapter 149, which applies to most Massachusetts workers. The law directly affects railroad employees covered by these entities, ensuring they receive sick leave benefits consistent with state law for non-railroad workers.
This bill amends Massachusetts' paid family medical leave law by redefining two key terms. It changes "covered business entity" to mean a business where 50% or more of the workforce consists of contracted workers (not employees under current law). It also redefines "covered contract worker" as a non-employee for whom an employer must pay into the Family and Employment Security Trust Fund. These changes directly affect businesses using significant numbers of contract workers and those contract workers, expanding their eligibility for paid family medical leave under the law. The policy change clarifies which employers and workers qualify for the state's paid leave program.
This bill creates a new bereavement leave policy for Massachusetts employees. It requires employers to allow up to 10 business days of leave for the death of a family member (including spouse, child, parent, or domestic partner living with the employee) and up to 4 business days for an extended family member (like an aunt, uncle, or cousin who helped care for a family member). Leave must be taken within 30 days of the death, and employers decide if it's paid or unpaid. The law applies to most Massachusetts workplaces and doesn't override existing stronger company policies or laws.
This bill establishes Election Day (the first Tuesday in November during even-numbered years) as a legal holiday for most workers in Massachusetts, with an exception for public employees whose jobs involve election operations. It also requires employers to provide eligible employees with 2 hours of paid leave to vote during early voting, mail-in voting periods, or on Election Day itself. Employees who already receive Election Day off as a holiday are not entitled to additional paid leave for voting on election day. The law prohibits employers from penalizing workers for using this leave in performance reviews, promotions, or other employment decisions.
This bill creates a new bereavement leave policy in Massachusetts, requiring most employers to allow employees up to 10 business days of leave within a 12-month period for the death of a family member. It directly affects employees in Massachusetts (excluding those working for employers with fewer than 25 employees) and their employers, covering leave for funeral arrangements, attending services, or grieving. Key provisions include a 30-day window to request leave after learning of a death, employer discretion over paid/unpaid status, and specific documentation options like obituaries or death certificates. The law takes effect on January 1, 2027.
HD 2470 requires Massachusetts school districts and education collaboratives to provide paid family and medical leave to all their educators. The bill expands eligibility under the state's family and medical leave program to include educators as "covered individuals" and designates school districts as "covered employers" for this purpose. Crucially, it mandates that school districts fund their required employer contributions using existing income surtax revenue, rather than employee payroll deductions. This ensures educators can access paid leave without additional costs to the school districts, while preserving their benefits like health insurance and seniority during leave.
By Mr. Oliveira, a petition (accompanied by bill, Senate, No. 1361) of Jacob R. Oliveira for legislation to establish paid prenatal leave program that would require employers to give employees twenty-four hours of paid prenatal leave during a fifty-two-week calendar. Labor and Workforce Development.
This bill creates a new paid bereavement leave policy for Massachusetts employees who lose a child under 18 years old. It requires employers to provide up to 10 days of paid leave (at the employee's regular pay rate) within 12 months of the child's death, which can be taken consecutively or in parts. Employees must provide documentation like a death certificate or obituary within 30 days of absence, and employers must notify all staff about this policy. The law does not restrict existing employer policies offering more than 10 days of leave and takes effect January 1 following enactment.
