Massachusetts HR Laws for Small Employers (2026)

Massachusetts at a glance

Pay range in job posts: Required at 25 or more employees in Massachusetts since October 29, 2025. The posting must show the annual salary or hourly wage range you reasonably and in good faith expect to pay.
New-hire reporting: Report every new hire to the Department of Revenue (DOR) within 14 days of the start date. This applies to all employers, whatever their size.
Paid sick leave: Employees earn at least 1 hour for every 30 hours worked, up to 40 hours a year. The time must be paid at 11 or more employees and can be unpaid below that.
Paid family and medical leave: State PFML program: up to 12 weeks of family leave, 20 weeks of medical leave, 26 weeks combined per benefit year. The 2026 contribution is 0.88% of eligible wages (0.46% with fewer than 25 covered individuals).
Final pay when you end employment: In full on the day of discharge, including earned vacation.
Final pay when they quit: In full on the next regular payday, or the following Saturday if there is no regular payday.
Unused vacation at exit: Required. Vacation promised under an oral or written agreement counts as wages and goes in the final paycheck. Unused earned sick time does not have to be paid out.

Hiring in Massachusetts

Pay ranges in job posts. Under the Wage Transparency Act (Chapter 141 of the Acts of 2024), an employer with 25 or more employees in Massachusetts must disclose the pay range in the posting for any position, including posts placed for you by a recruiter or job board. The pay range is the annual salary range or hourly wage range you reasonably and in good faith expect to pay for the job at that time. The same employers must give the range to an employee offered a promotion or transfer to a role with different duties, and to an employee or applicant who asks. Retaliating against someone who asks is illegal. See our guide to pay transparency in job posts.

The Attorney General enforces the law. A first offense gets a warning, a second a fine of up to $500, and a third a fine of up to $1,000. Until October 29, 2027, a covered employer has 2 business days to fix a problem after receiving a notice to cure.

Pay data reports. Employers with 100 or more employees in Massachusetts at any time in the prior calendar year that file an EEO-1 report with the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) must also file a copy with the Secretary of the Commonwealth by February 1 each year. It is the same report you already send the EEOC.

Salary history: you may not ask about an applicant's wage or salary history until after you make an offer of employment that includes compensation.
Criminal records: you may not ask for criminal record information on your initial written application form, except in very limited cases.
New-hire reporting: report each new hire to DOR within 14 days of the start date, and anyone returning after 30 or more days off the payroll. Independent contractors paid $600 or more in a year are reported too. The penalty is up to $25 for each person not reported. See new-hire reporting.
Notices at hire: post the Earned Sick Time notice and either hand each worker a copy or put your sick time policy in the handbook. Display the PFML workplace poster and give employees the written PFML notice for your workforce size. Employers with 6 or more employees give each new hire a written copy of the sexual harassment policy.

Non-competes. The Massachusetts Noncompetition Agreement Act (M.G.L. c. 149, s. 24L) sets strict conditions that matter for tech hiring. Agreements about non-solicitation, confidentiality and invention assignment are not covered by these limits.

Massachusetts non-compete basics
Rule	What the law says
Timing at hire	In writing, signed by both sides, stating the right to consult a lawyer, and given by the earlier of the formal offer or 10 business days before the start date.
Length	No more than 12 months after employment ends (up to 2 years only after a breach of fiduciary duty or taking company property).
Payment	A garden leave clause paying at least 50% of the highest annualized base salary from the last 2 years, or other agreed consideration stated in the agreement.
Who is protected	Cannot be enforced against non-exempt employees, student interns, anyone 18 or younger, or anyone laid off or fired without cause.

Leave in Massachusetts

Earned sick time. Most workers earn at least 1 hour of sick time for every 30 hours worked, up to 40 hours a year. Employers with 11 or more employees must pay for it. They can use it for their own illness, injury or medical appointment, for a child, spouse, parent or spouse's parent, to deal with domestic violence, and since November 21, 2024, for pregnancy loss or a failed assisted reproduction, adoption or surrogacy. Up to 40 unused hours carry over, but an employee can use no more than 40 hours in a calendar year. You may ask for a doctor's note only in limited cases, such as an absence of more than 3 consecutive workdays. A PTO policy can replace sick time if it gives the same benefits and protections or better. See paid sick leave laws.

Paid Family and Medical Leave. The state program, run by the Department of Family and Medical Leave (DFML), covers most employees. Each benefit year an eligible employee can take up to 20 weeks of paid medical leave, 12 weeks of paid family leave (to bond with a new child or care for a family member), and 26 weeks in total. Employees should give 30 days' notice when they can. In 2026 the maximum weekly benefit is $1,230.39. Employees may top up the state benefit with accrued PTO, as long as the total does not exceed their average weekly wage.

PFML contributions for 2025 and 2026 (share of eligible wages)
Covered individuals	Total sent to DFML	May be withheld from employees	Employer must pay
25 or more	0.88%	Up to 0.46% (0.18% family plus 0.28% medical)	At least 0.42%
Fewer than 25	0.46%	All of it	Nothing, unless you choose to

Contributions are capped at the Social Security taxable maximum. Rates are set each year, and from January 1, 2027, Chapter 101 of the Acts of 2026 moves the employer share from the medical leave contribution to the family leave contribution. Check the DFML rate page before your first 2027 payroll. More in paid family leave states.

Parental leave. The Massachusetts Parental Leave Act applies to employers with 6 or more employees. After 3 months of full-time work (or a probation period of up to 3 months), an employee can take 8 weeks of leave for the birth or adoption of a child, with 2 weeks' notice where possible. The leave can be unpaid, and the employee must get the same or a similar job back. Two employees of the same employer share 8 weeks for the same child. The federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) adds unpaid leave at 50 or more employees.

Final pay in Massachusetts

Final paycheck deadlines under the Wage Act (M.G.L. c. 149, s. 148)
Situation	When final pay is due
You end the employment (firing or layoff)	In full on the day of discharge
The employee quits	In full on the next regular payday, or the following Saturday if there is no regular payday
Earned, unused vacation	Paid with the final wages, on the same deadline
Unused earned sick time	No payout required

The most common mistake is waiting for the next payroll run after a termination. In Massachusetts the check is due the same day, so have it ready before the conversation. The Wage Act treats vacation pay promised under an oral or written agreement as wages, and an employee who wins a Wage Act claim gets treble (three times) damages plus legal costs and attorneys' fees. See final paycheck laws and unused PTO payout.

Unemployment notice. Within 30 days of any separation, temporary or permanent, give the employee the Department of Unemployment Assistance pamphlet How to Apply for Unemployment Insurance Benefits (Form 0590A). Hand it over in person and mail it only if you must, and write your Federal Employer Identification Number (FEIN) and mailing address on it. You must also keep the unemployment poster (Form 2553A) up where everyone can see it.

Health coverage. Massachusetts has a "mini-COBRA" law (M.G.L. c. 176J, s. 9) for businesses with 2 to 19 employees. See when you need to offer COBRA.

Other things to know

Minimum wage: $15.00 an hour since January 1, 2023, with a $6.75 service rate for tipped workers. No further increase is scheduled.
Overtime: one and a half times the regular rate for hours over 40 in a workweek. See overtime rules.
Anti-discrimination: Chapter 151B, enforced by the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination (MCAD), covers employers with 6 or more employees. Those employers must have a written sexual harassment policy and give every employee a copy each year.
Workers' compensation: every employer must carry it, no matter how many employees or how many hours they work. See workers' compensation requirements.
Layoffs: check the federal WARN Act before a large reduction in force. See WARN Act layoffs.

Common questions

Do I have to pay out unused vacation in Massachusetts?

Yes. Vacation promised under an oral or written agreement counts as wages, so earned vacation goes in the final paycheck on the same deadline as other wages. Unused earned sick time does not have to be paid out.

Does the Massachusetts pay range law apply to a company with fewer than 25 employees?

No. The posting duty, and the duty to give the range on request or with a promotion or transfer, apply to employers with 25 or more employees in Massachusetts. Smaller employers may still choose to post ranges.

Do small employers pay into Massachusetts PFML?

Yes, every employer sends contributions to DFML. With fewer than 25 covered individuals, the 2026 total is 0.46% of eligible wages and all of it can be withheld from employees, so there is no required employer share.

Can a Massachusetts tech company use non-competes?

Yes, within limits. The agreement can last no more than 12 months, needs garden leave pay or other agreed consideration, and cannot be enforced against non-exempt employees or anyone laid off or fired without cause.

When is final pay due if I fire someone in Massachusetts?

On the day of discharge, in full, including earned vacation. An employee who quits is paid on the next regular payday.

How MambaHR handles this

MambaHR keeps your employee records and hiring pipeline, and posts jobs with pay ranges. At exit it works out final pay under Massachusetts rules, including same-day timing for a discharge and earned vacation, for a person to approve. On leave requests it cites the state PFML program and sends the request to a person to decide how leave combines, and every change is logged.

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Sources

Last reviewed October 2, 2026. This page is general information, not legal advice. Laws change and exceptions apply, so check the sources above or an employment lawyer before you act on a specific case.