Massachusetts Wage & Hour Claim Calculator

Both the federal FLSA and Massachusetts wage law protect workers' pay, and employees get the benefit of whichever sets the higher standard. Typical Massachusetts wage cases involve unpaid overtime, employee misclassification, unpaid final wages, illegal deductions, or missed meal and rest breaks.

A powerful feature of wage law is that it often doubles the recovery: under the FLSA, unpaid wages can be awarded together with an equal amount in liquidated damages, and many states add their own penalties for willful violations. Prevailing employees are also typically entitled to attorney fees, so a Massachusetts wage claim can be worth substantially more than the raw unpaid wages alone.

The FLSA generally allows 2 years to recover back wages, extended to 3 years for willful violations. Massachusetts's own wage statute of limitations is about 3 years, in line with the national average of 3.6 years, and the longer applicable period usually controls — so the sooner you act, the more back pay you can recover.

You can pursue unpaid wages in Massachusetts even while still employed — retaliation for asserting wage rights is illegal under both federal and state law. Claims can go through your state labor agency, the U.S. Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division, or a private attorney, and many wage cases proceed as collective or class actions when one policy affected multiple workers.

Breaks at work in Massachusetts, as recorded on a review of official state sources completed 2026-09-15. Meal break: required for adult workers, at least 30 minutes, unpaid; when: more than 6 hours in a calendar day. Meal break exceptions: iron works, glass works, paper mills, letterpress, print, bleaching and dyeing works; Attorney General may exempt continuous-process establishments. Rest break: no state requirement for adult workers. Under federal law, short breaks an employer does give, of about 5 to 20 minutes, count as paid work time. If a required break is not given: none for the employee; employer fine of $300 to $600 per violation.

Final paychecks in Massachusetts. If you are fired: on the day of discharge. If you quit: next regular payday (following Saturday if there is no regular payday). Unused vacation: earned, unused vacation must be paid out when employment ends. If the final paycheck is late: mandatory treble damages as liquidated damages, plus costs and attorneys' fees. A break that was never given or a final paycheck that arrives late can be part of a wage claim, and the break and final paycheck guide in the related reading below compares every state.