Massachusetts Labor Guidance
Free plain-English summaries of opinion letters, administrative policies, and interpretive notices from Massachusetts's labor agency, with the current status and the official source on every page.
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Minimum wage for tipped employees who also do non-tip work in the same shift
DLS addressed how to pay tipped employees who also perform non-tip work (like kitchen prep or cleaning) during the same shift. It concluded that while the service rate plus tips can satisfy minimum wa…
Time spent counting and distributing pooled tips after a shift is compensable
An employer asked DLS whether time its sales associates spend counting tips and distributing them to coworkers under a mandatory tip-pooling policy is compensable working time. DLS concluded that if e…
Banquet service charges cannot substitute for minimum wage, only for the service rate
A hotel asked DLS whether a compulsory banquet service charge, paid in full to servers and bartenders in lieu of tips, can satisfy the entire minimum wage owed to those employees. DLS concluded that u…
Untipped wait staff in training must get full minimum wage, not the service rate
A restaurant asked whether it could pay newly-hired wait staff the reduced $2.63 service rate during an initial training period in which they earn no tips. DLS concluded that untipped trainees aren't …
Tip pooling, service charges, and payroll-record changes under the 2004 Wage Act amendments
This Advisory from the Attorney General's Fair Labor Division explains "An Act Protecting the Wages and Tips of Certain Employees," signed into law June 10, 2004. It defines which workers (wait staff,…
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These are official interpretive documents from Massachusetts's labor agency: opinion letters answering questions from employers and workers, administrative policies, and interpretive notices. They show how the agency applies wage-and-hour and workplace law to real situations, but they are guidance, not statutes or court decisions, and the agency can supersede or withdraw them. Every page above shows the document's current status, when that status was last verified, and a link to the official source.