Massachusetts Employment Law Blog

Currently, 26 million Americans have requested unemployment benefits since the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic. Federally, the CARES Act provides new and expanded emergency options, which are being adopted and implemented by individual states. At the state level, Massachusetts has put into effect Emergency Regulations to assist both employees and employers with unemployment insurance during COVID-19 and to help implement portions of the CARES Act. For Massachusetts employers trying to put their employees in the best position to maintain wage rates, the following options and strategies are available to help:

• Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation (FPUC)
• Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA)
• Furloughs and Standby Status
• Short-Term Compensation Programs (or Work Share Programs)
• Other Important Provisions

Amanda Thibodeau explains each of these programs and qualifying criteria in our recent COVID-19 Alert.