Wage & Hour Counsel : Wage & Hour Lawyer & Attorney : Littler Mendelson Law Firm : Employment Law, Labor Relations

By Christopher Kaczmarek

On March 4, 2013, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court resolved a dispute regarding the effect of after-the-fact gratuitous payments on wages due under state law. In Dixon v. City of Malden, the court held that gratuitous, after-the-fact payments by the City did not extinguish the City’s obligation to pay an employee for the value of his accrued, unused vacation time.

The plaintiff in the case had been the director of a nursing home owned by the City of Malden. After over 20 years of employment, the City’s board voted not to reappoint him to the position. The City agreed to negotiate regarding retirement and severance issues, but the parties were unable to reach an agreement prior to the employee’s departure. At the time, he had accrued 50 days of unused vacation time, amounting to $13,615.54.

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On August 31, 2010, just in time for Labor Day, New York Governor David Paterson signed into law the “Domestic Workers Bill of Rights” (“Bill of Rights”), which grants certain employment protections to household domestic workers such as nannies, caregivers and housekeepers. The Bill of Rights, which takes effect on November 29, 2010, is the first of its kind in the nation and amends New York Labor Law, in addition to other statutes, to entitle domestic workers to receive overtime pay, one day of rest per week or overtime pay when they work on their day of rest, and three days of paid time off after one year of employment. To learn more about the law and its implications for employers, please continue reading Littler's ASAP, "New York Enacts Bill of Rights for Domestic Workers," by Stephen A. Fuchs.

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