When “Payday” Comes Only Once a Month: Why Massachusetts Employers Face Treble-Damages Exposure for Monthly Payrolls

On February 21, 2025, Boston University lecturer Lydia Curtin-Wilding filed a putative class action alleging BU paid faculty only once a month—on the last business day—without securing the required written elections. BU’s bid to dismiss was rejected on May 23, 2025, leaving the claim—and the prospect of eight-figure damages—very much alive.

Why late pay equals unpaid pay

The statute treats timing as absolute: when wages arrive late, they are legally “unpaid.” The employer automatically owes:

Treble the late-paid amount
12 % statutory interest
Reasonable attorneys’ fees and costs
Joint personal liability for presidents, treasurers, and any “agents having management” of the business

Because the violation repeats every cycle, damages scale arithmetically. A $90,000-salary employee paid monthly instead of bi-weekly accrues roughly $7,500 in late wages each cycle; trebling that over 36 months produces more than $810,000 for one worker.

A growing pattern: Harvard and Amherst

BU is not alone.

Harvard University was sued in January 2025 for the same practice; the complaint alleges “millions of dollars” in systemic late wages to adjunct faculty.
Two former staff members sued Amherst College in December 2024, claiming the college’s default monthly schedule withheld more than $100,000 in timely pay between them and similarly affected hundreds of employees.

Together with BU, these filings underscore how quickly the Wage Act’s timing rules translate into class-wide exposure when large institutions rely on legacy monthly payrolls without documenting employee consent.

Practical implications for employees and counsel

Proof is straightforward: payroll ledgers show both the schedule and the absence of signed elections.
Class certification is appropriate: one uniform policy, the same math for each check.
Damages are mandatory: employers cannot “cure” by paying after suit—Reuter makes treble awards automatic once a violation occurs.
Officer liability raises settlement leverage: individual executives face personal judgments if the case proceeds to judgment.

Take-home

The Curtin-Wilding BU decision is a reminder that the Wage Act’s timing provisions are not mere technicalities—they are enforceable rights with strong remedies. For employees paid monthly without a signed agreement to be paid this way, every paycheck carries a built-in MA Wage Act claim. Employees who suspect late payment have a strong statutory ally, a clear damages formula, and a growing body of recent case law in their favor. If you are being paid monthly in Massachusetts, feel free to get in touch to discuss your case.