Section 175M:9 - Prohibited acts(a) It shall be unlawful for any employer to retaliate by discharging, firing, suspending, expelling, disciplining, through the application of attendance policies or otherwise, threatening or in any other manner discriminating against an employee for exercising any right to which such employee is entitled under this chapter or with the purpose of interfering with the exercise of any right to which such employee is entitled under this chapter.(b) It shall be unlawful for any employer to retaliate by discharging, firing, suspending, expelling, disciplining, through the application of attendance policies or otherwise, threatening or in any other manner discriminating against an employee who has filed a complaint or instituted or caused to be instituted a proceeding under or related to this section, has testified or is about to testify in an inquiry or proceeding or has given or is about to give information connected to any inquiry or proceeding relating to this section.(c) Any negative change in the seniority, status, employment benefits, pay or other terms or conditions of employment of an employee which occurs any time during a leave taken by an employee under this chapter, or during the 6 month period following an employee's leave or restoration to a position pursuant to this section, or of an employee who has participated in proceedings or inquiries pursuant to this section within 6 months of the termination of proceedings shall be presumed to be retaliation under this section. Such presumption shall be rebutted only by clear and convincing evidence that such employer's action was not retaliation against the employee and that the employer had sufficient independent justification for taking such action and would have in fact taken such action in the same manner and at the same time the action was taken, regardless of the employee's use of leave, restoration to a position or participation in proceedings or inquiries as described in this subsection. An employer found to have threatened, coerced or taken reprisal against any employee pursuant to this subsection shall rescind any adverse alteration in the terms of employment for such employee and shall offer reinstatement to any terminated employee and shall also be liable in an action brought under subsection (d).(d) An employee or former employee aggrieved by a violation of this section or subsections (e) and (f) of section 2 of this chapter may, not more than 3 years after the violation occurs, institute a civil action in the superior court. A party to the action shall be entitled to a jury trial. All remedies available in common law tort actions shall be available to prevailing plaintiffs and shall be in addition to any legal or equitable relief provided in this section. The court may: (i) issue temporary restraining orders or preliminary or permanent injunctions to restrain continued violations of this section; (ii) reinstate the employee to the same position held before the violation or to an equivalent position; (iii) reinstate full fringe benefits and seniority rights to the employee; (iv) compensate the employee for 3 times the lost wages, benefits and other remuneration and the interest thereon; and (v) order payment by the employer of reasonable costs and attorneys' fees.Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 175M, § 9
Added by Acts 2018, c. 121,§ 29, eff. 1/1/2019.