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Health‑care workers, unions push to remove hospitals’ Wage Act exemption
Summary
Physician assistants, nurses and health‑care worker groups urged the committee to pass legislation (Senate 13‑21 and related House files) removing the longstanding Wage Act exemption for hospitals so employees can recover unpaid wages, liquidated damages and attorneys fees. Witnesses described withheld pay, forced PTO deductions and limited legal
Multiple health‑care workers and labor organizations testified Oct. 28 in favor of legislation to remove hospitals’ explicit exemption from the Massachusetts Wage Act. Speakers described scenarios in which hospital workers were denied timely pay, were forced to use paid time off for holidays without notice, or could not recover attorneys fees under the current statutory scheme.
Duncan Davio, president of the Massachusetts Association of Physician Assistants, described his experience losing PTO and limited recourse after a layoff. He told the committee hospital workers are often treated as "disposable" and that the current exemption makes it difficult for lower‑paid clinicians and support staff to recover unpaid wages. Katie Murphy of the Massachusetts Nurses Association said hospital employees — numbering more than 200,000 statewide by March 2025, according to her testimony — lack the Wage Act remedies that other workers enjoy.
Supporters asked the committee to report the bill favorably, saying it would create parity with other workers and provide a stronger deterrent to wage‑related misconduct by large health‑care employers. Opponents were not a major presence on the bill at this hearing, though committee members asked for clarifications about interaction with collective bargaining agreements and existing labor protections.
The committee did not hold a vote.
