© 2025 Seyfarth Shaw LLP Massachusetts Wage & Hour Peculiarities, 2025 ed. | 145 behavior or who has a family member who is a victim of abusive behavior to take up to fifteen days of leave during a twelve-month period to address issues relating to the abusive behavior.854 An employee is eligible for such leave if the following criteria are met: (1) either the employee or their family member (as defined below) is the victim of abusive behavior, such as domestic violence, stalking, sexual assault, or kidnapping; (2) the leave is sought to obtain victim services directly related to the abusive behavior against the employee or family member of the employee; and (3) the employee is not the perpetrator of the abusive behavior.855 In 2021, the Supreme Judicial Court interpreted the definition of who is a covered employee under the ARDV broadly to include candidates for employment, who accept an offer of employment pending a background check or whose onboarding process is not yet complete.856 Accordingly, withdrawing an employment offer because a candidate needs time off for reasons related to abusive behavior may violate the ARDV. For purposes of the ARDV, a “family member” is defined as (1) a parent, step-parent, child, stepchild, sibling, grandparent or grandchild; (2) a married spouse; (3) persons in a substantive dating or engagement relationship and who reside together; (4) persons having a child in common regardless of whether they have ever married or resided together; or (5) persons in a guardianship relationship.857 The reasons for which an employee can take leave include: Seeking or obtaining medical attention, counseling, victim services, or legal assistance Securing housing Obtaining a protective order Appearing in court or before a grand jury Meeting with a district attorney or law enforcement official Attending child custody proceedings Addressing other issues related to the abusive behavior858 854 M.G.L. ch. 149, § 52E. 855 M.G.L. ch. 149, § 52E(b). 856 Osborne-Trussell v. Children's Hosp. Corp., 488 Mass. 248, 258 (2021) (vacating allowance of defendant’s motion to dismiss where complaint plausibly alleged that nurse was hospital's employee and, thus, subject to the anti-retaliation provision of the Domestic Violence Leave law). 857 M.G.L. ch. 149, § 52E(a) 858 M.G.L. ch. 149, § 52E.
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