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Photo: TipsTimesAdmin via Flickr (CC by 2.0) – tipstimes.com

Earlier this week, Massachusetts House of Representatives voted unanimously to pass An Act Establishing the Massachusetts Pregnant Workers Fairness Act, a law that would guarantee greater protections for pregnant women and nursing mothers.  The legislation prohibits employers from discriminating against an employee because of “pregnancy or a condition related to pregnancy,” which is defined to include the need to express breast milk for a nursing child.  It also prohibits employers from denying pregnant women and nursing mothers reasonable accommodations if requested by the employee unless it would impose an undue hardship upon the employer.  The bill provides the following examples of such reasonable accommodations:
Continue Reading Massachusetts House Passes Legislation to Protect Pregnant and Nursing Mothers in the Workplace

Photo: Chuck Coker via Flickr (CC by ND 2.0)
Photo: Chuck Coker via Flickr (CC by ND 2.0)

Last Thursday, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court (SJC) heard oral arguments in a case that asks whether employers can be required to make accommodations for employees’ off-duty use of medical marijuana.

The case was brought by a woman who suffers from Chron’s disease and who treats the condition with marijuana, as authorized by state law.  (Massachusetts voters passed an initiative in 2012 decriminalizing the possession and use of marijuana for medical purposes.  In 2016, Massachusetts voters passed a measure decriminalizing marijuana for recreational use.  Marijuana is illegal for all purposes under federal law.)  After the plaintiff accepted an entry-level job at a marketing company, she was told that she would need to take a drug test. 
Continue Reading Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court Considers Employees’ Use of Medical Marijuana

Photo: Rusty Clark via Flickr (CC by 2.0)
Photo: Rusty Clark via Flickr (CC by 2.0)

Earlier this month, the Supreme Court announced that it had decided not to hear the case of Gavin Grimm – the transgender student who sued his school district seeking access to the restroom and locker room facilities that correspond to his gender identity.  The Court’s  change in course followed the Trump Administration’s rescission of an Obama-era Department of Education policy on the issue of bathroom access.  Although Grimm’s suit involves public school students, private employers have been keeping a close eye on the case for any implications it may have on the rights of transgender employees in the workplace.  The answer to that question will have to wait.
Continue Reading The Problem with Pronouns

Photo: William Brawley via Flickr (CC by 2.0)
Photo: William Brawley via Flickr (CC by 2.0)

Last week, a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit upheld the dismissal of a suit filed by construction-industry employers and their trade associations seeking to block enforcement of the Massachusetts Earned Sick Time Law in settings where…

Donald TrumpWhile inauguration day is still several weeks away, employers are already wondering what is in store for them when Donald Trump takes office as the forty-fifth president. Throughout his campaign, Mr. Trump has set forth a number of promises and proposals that could have significant effects on American employers. It remains to be seen whether…

Photo: Jason Lawrence via Flickr (CC by 2.0)
Photo: Jason Lawrence via Flickr (CC by 2.0)

Upon a motion for preliminary approval of the class-action settlement for $100 million, a federal court found that the settlement between Uber and drivers in two states was “not fair, adequate and reasonable” and denied approval.  It ordered the parties to confer about…

Open to the PublicEffective October 1, 2016, “places of public accommodation” in Massachusetts are prohibited from discriminating against persons based on their gender identity.  Under this new anti-discrimination law signed by Governor Charlie Baker this summer, places of public accommodation must allow individuals to use or access gender-segregated areas such as bathrooms and locker rooms consistent with their…

In a historic moment, yesterday, Governor Charlie Baker signed into law a comprehensive pay-equity bill aimed at eradicating the wage gap in Massachusetts. With the bill’s passage, Massachusetts has become the first state in the nation to prohibit employers from asking job applicants to provide a salary history during the interview process.

Supporters of the…