Massachusetts has some of the most detailed wage and hour rules in the country, and penalties for late or missing wages can be steep. The table summarizes the rules hourly employers deal with most often; each topic is covered in more depth below.
EZTime labor rule alerts flag overtime and missed rest periods before payroll.
| Topic | Rule |
|---|---|
| Minimum wage | $15.00 per hour (Mass.gov) |
| Tipped service rate | $6.75 per hour if tips bring the total to at least $15.00 |
| Overtime | 1.5 times the regular rate after 40 hours a week; no daily overtime |
| Meal break | 30 minutes for work of more than 6 hours in a calendar day (M.G.L. c.149, s.100) |
| Earned sick time | 1 hour per 30 hours worked, up to 40 hours a year; paid at employers with 11 or more employees (Mass.gov) |
| Paid family and medical leave | State PFML program; up to 26 combined weeks per benefit year (DFML) |
| Paydays | Hourly workers paid weekly or every other week (M.G.L. c.149, s.148) |
| Final pay | Discharged: in full on the last day. Quit: next regular payday |
| Minors | Work permits required for all workers under 18 (Mass.gov) |
The state's minimum wage and overtime page lists the Massachusetts minimum wage as $15.00 per hour, in effect since January 1, 2023, and no later rate had been published there at the time of this review. The U.S. Department of Labor state table also shows $15.00 and notes that the Massachusetts rate can never be less than 50 cents above the federal minimum.
Employers may pay a service rate of $6.75 per hour to wait staff, service employees and service bartenders, as long as tips bring the employee to at least $15.00 per hour. If they do not, the employer makes up the difference. Massachusetts tip rules are strict: according to the state's pay and recordkeeping guide, employers may not keep tips, only wait staff, service bartenders and other service employees may share in a tip pool, and managers and supervisors may not share in tips on days they have managerial responsibilities.
Agricultural workers have a separate minimum of $8.00 per hour. Massachusetts also has a three-hour reporting pay rule: when a for-profit employer schedules an employee for three or more hours and the employee arrives on time but is sent home early, the employee must receive at least three hours' pay at the minimum wage.
Most non-exempt employees must be paid one and one-half times their regular rate for hours over 40 in a workweek. State law does not require daily overtime, and the state notes that compensatory time off cannot replace overtime pay for non-exempt workers. Massachusetts exemptions are listed in M.G.L. c.151, s.1A and differ from the federal FLSA in places. For example, restaurant employees are exempt from state overtime but not from federal overtime, so restaurants still owe overtime under federal law. Paying a salary alone does not make a worker exempt, and holiday pay for unworked days does not count toward the 40-hour threshold. Our FLSA overtime guide explains the federal tests, and the overtime calculator handles the math.
The state minimum wage law does not require extra pay for weekend, holiday or night work. Separately, retail employees cannot be required to work on January 1, November 11 or the second Monday in October, and refusing such work cannot be grounds for discipline.
Under M.G.L. c.149, s.100, no one may be required to work more than six hours in a calendar day without a meal break of at least 30 minutes. The U.S. DOL meal break table notes certain industrial exclusions, such as iron works, glass works and paper mills. Massachusetts does not require separate rest breaks for adults. Under the federal hours-worked rules, short breaks of usually 20 minutes or less count as paid time, so if you offer them, do not deduct them.
The state's earned sick time law covers virtually all employers:
Massachusetts runs a statewide Paid Family and Medical Leave program funded by employer and employee contributions. Eligible workers can take up to 12 weeks of family leave to care for a family member or bond with a child, up to 20 weeks of medical leave for their own serious health condition, and up to 26 combined weeks in a benefit year. The maximum weekly benefit for 2026 is $1,230.39. Check the Department of Family and Medical Leave for current contribution rates and employer filing duties. The PTO accrual calculator is handy for modeling sick-time accrual.
Under M.G.L. c.149, s.148, hourly employees must be paid weekly or every other week. Wages are due within six days of the end of the pay period for employees who work five or six days a week, and within seven days for those who work seven days, or fewer than five. Salaried employees may in some cases be paid semi-monthly or monthly, but wages still may not remain unpaid for more than six days after the pay period ends. The U.S. DOL payday table summarizes the same frequency rules.
Final pay deadlines are short:
Every payment must come with a pay stub showing the employer's and employee's names, the payment date, hours worked during the pay period, the hourly rate, and all deductions and increases. Employers may not charge for stubs, and electronic stubs are allowed if workers can print them for free. Deductions are allowed only when the law permits them or the worker requests them for the worker's own benefit.
Massachusetts requires employers to keep a Youth Employment Permit on file for every worker under 18, and children under 14 generally may not work. The state's work hours page sets these limits:
| Age | Hour limits |
|---|---|
| 14 and 15 | During the school year: no work during school hours, up to 3 hours on a school day, 18 hours a week and 8 hours on a weekend or holiday. When school is out: up to 8 hours a day, 40 hours a week, 6 days a week. Only between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m. (9 p.m. from July 1 to Labor Day). |
| 16 and 17 | Up to 9 hours a day, 48 hours a week, 6 days a week. No work from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. (10:15 p.m. if the employer stops serving customers at 10 p.m.). On nights not before a school day, until 11:30 p.m., or midnight at restaurants and racetracks. |
No one under 18 may work after 8 p.m. without direct, on-site adult supervision, with a narrow exception for some mall kiosks. The U.S. DOL child labor table provides a side-by-side comparison with federal rules.
Employers must keep payroll records for three years, including each worker's name, address, job, pay for each period and daily and weekly hours. Workers may review their own records. The time card calculator can help with quick checks.
The Attorney General's Massachusetts Wage and Hour Laws poster covers minimum wage, tips, overtime, meal breaks, payment of wages, child labor and leave rights. Employers can request printed copies. Also post the earned sick time notice and the PFML workplace notice.
EZTime gives Massachusetts businesses one place to capture time and keep the records these rules depend on. Employees clock in with the GPS mobile time clock and geofencing, NFC tags, a shared tablet kiosk or biometric clocks. Managers build rosters with shift templates and approve shift swaps in the scheduling software, while overtime and break alerts flag problems before a shift ends. Break alerts help you schedule the 30-minute meal before the six-hour mark, and quick final-pay exports help you meet same-day deadlines. PTO and sick-leave balances update automatically, and payroll-ready Excel and PDF exports work with any payroll software. Plans start from $2 per employee per month, with a 14-day trial.
This guide is general information, not legal advice. Laws change; check the Massachusetts Attorney General's Fair Labor Division or an employment attorney. Last reviewed November 2026.
The Massachusetts minimum wage is $15.00 per hour. Tipped service workers can be paid $6.75 per hour if tips bring them to at least $15.00.
No. Overtime is owed at one and one-half times the regular rate for hours over 40 in a workweek. Massachusetts does not require overtime based on daily hours.
Yes. Employees cannot be required to work more than six hours in a calendar day without a meal break of at least 30 minutes.
Yes. All covered employers must let workers earn up to 40 hours of sick time a year. Employers with 11 or more employees must pay for it; smaller employers may provide it unpaid.
An employee who is fired or laid off must be paid in full on the last day of work. An employee who quits must be paid by the next regular payday.