© 2025 Seyfarth Shaw LLP Massachusetts Wage & Hour Peculiarities, 2025 ed. | 19 minimum wage, as well as overtime.108 This Section addresses the minimum wage rate established by this statute and how it differs from obligations under the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).109 The employer must apply whichever law provides a greater degree of protection for the employee.110 Like the Wage Act, an employee can bring a civil action for violations of the Massachusetts Minimum Fair Wages Law pursuant to Section 150 of Chapter 149. A. The Minimum Wage Rate in Massachusetts With certain limited exceptions, effective January 1, 2023, all Massachusetts employees must be paid a minimum wage of $15.00 for each hour worked.111 Because the Massachusetts minimum wage is higher than the federal minimum wage, Massachusetts employers must comply with the state requirement unless employees are exempt from the Massachusetts minimum wage.112 In fact, Massachusetts law provides that the Commonwealth’s minimum wage will always exceed the federal minimum by at least $0.50 per hour.113 1. Coverage Under the Massachusetts Minimum Fair Wage Law In Massachusetts, the minimum wage law covers any person working in an “occupation.”114 The statute defines “occupation” as an “industry, trade or business . . . whether operated for profit or otherwise, and any other class of work in which persons are gainfully employed . . . .”115 As discussed below, “occupation” is defined to specifically exclude certain types of work. The Massachusetts Minimum Fair Wage Law applies to private employers of all sizes.116 The statute does not include state or municipal employees—those employees are covered by the FLSA.117 108 M.G.L. ch. 151. Overtime is addressed in Section IV. 109 29 U.S.C. § 206. 110 The “workweek,” which is discussed in Section III.A, forms the basis for determining an employer’s minimum wage and overtime obligations. Under the FLSA, most courts have held that an employer need only pay its employees an average of at least minimum wage for all the hours worked during the workweek. See United States v. Klinghoffer Bros. Realty Corp., 285 F.2d 487, 489-90 (2d Cir. 1960) (six unpaid hours per week did not constitute FLSA violation where average for all hours worked exceeded minimum wage), but see Norceide v. Cambridge Health Alliance, 814 F. Supp. 2d 17, 22-23 (D. Mass. 2011) (rejecting Klinghoffer rule in off-the-clock case by hospital employees). 111 M.G.L. ch. 151, § 1. See Section III for a detailed discussion of how to determine the “hours worked” by an employee. 112 The FLSA sets the current federal minimum wage at $7.25 per hour. 29 U.S.C. § 206(a)(1), as amended by Pub. L. No. 110-28 § 8102. 113 M.G.L. ch. 151, § 1. 114 M.G.L. ch. 151, §§ 1-2. 115 M.G.L. ch. 151, § 2. 116 See id. 117 See Grenier v. Town of Hubbardston, 7 Mass. App. Ct. 911, 911 (1979) (holding that the Massachusetts Minimum Fair Wage Law did not cover employees of the Commonwealth or its political subdivisions); DLS Opinion Letter MW-2002-001 (Jan. 11, 2002) (opining that “M.G.L. c. 149, § 30B, not M.G.L. c. 151, § 1A, governs overtime pay for state employees”); DLS Opinion Letter MW-2002-004 (Feb. 13, 2002) (opining that Massachusetts minimum wage law does not apply to municipal employees).
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