On June 19, 2015, the Massachusetts Attorney General published
the final regulations concerning the new Earned Sick Time
("EST") law that will go into effect on July 1, 2015.
These final regulations differ somewhat from the draft regulations
submitted in April and provide clarification and additional detail
to aid with implementation.
The Basics
Under the EST law, all employees in Massachusetts must be
allowed to accrue and use up to 40 hours of EST in a calendar year,
subject to certain conditions set forth in the law and the
regulations. Under the previously announced "safe harbor"
provision, companies that utilized a policy under which certain
employees received at least 30 hours of paid time off as of May 1,
2015 will be deemed compliant relative to those employees and any
other employees to whom the policy is extended on a proportional
basis. Additionally, starting July 1, all use of time, whether
under the law itself or under the safe harbor provision, must
