Press & News

Richard Alfred Quoted in Employment Law 360 "Mass. Gov. Allows Triple Damages Bill To Become Law"
04/17/2008

Richard Alfred was quoted in the article, "Mass. Gov. Allows Triple Damages Bill To Become Law," published by Employment Law 360 on April 17, 2008. The article reports on Massachusetts Bill S. 1059 becoming law, which mandates triple damages for employees who prevail in wage-and-hour suits.

Richard pointed out that the law will make Massachusetts the only state in the nation with an automatic treble damages statute. Therefore, he noted, “I would expect that there will be a substantial increase in wage-and-hour litigation in Massachusetts, and that it's going to have a harmful impact on Massachusetts businesses, on the Massachusetts economy and, indirectly, on Massachusetts employees.” He further remarked that, “Massachusetts was a relative latecomer to wage-and-hour cases…. We haven't seen anything like what's happened in California or Florida or many other jurisdictions around the country.”

Prior to the passage of the treble damages statute, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court ruled in 2005 that plaintiffs needed to prove that employers had an “evil motive” or “reckless indifference,” and left it to trial judges whether to award treble damages. Richard noted that the number of wage-and-hour cases in Massachusetts continued increasing even after the 2005 decision. He expressed concern that the new law would prevent more settlements before trial and make the state's employment laws even more complicated. Richard observed, “In a class action situation, the amount of money at stake has the potential to be enormous in certain circumstances.”