S1314 would create a limited youth training wage exception to Massachusetts’ general minimum wage law. The bill amends chapter 151 of the General Laws to provide that the state minimum wage section would not apply, for an initial training period, to workers under 18 who work 20 hours or less per week and require a work permit. For those workers, the training period would last for the first 120 hours of employment with a new employer, and during that period they would have to be paid at least $10 per hour.
The measure is narrowly targeted at young, part-time workers in their first weeks on the job. It is designed to apply only to minors who need work permits, and only for a defined 120-hour period with a new employer, after which the regular minimum wage rules would apply. The bill is similar to a prior-session proposal, indicating it is a recurring policy idea rather than a one-time change.
Impact
If enacted, the bill would amend Massachusetts minimum wage law in chapter 151 by carving out a new, temporary subminimum wage category for certain workers under 18. It would affect employers who hire minors for limited hours and would allow them to pay $10 per hour during the first 120 hours of employment, instead of the standard minimum wage, for eligible employees. The change would not broadly alter wage rules for adult workers or for minors outside the specified conditions, but it would create a new statutory exception that employers, young workers, and labor regulators would need to follow.
Sentiment
Based on the bill text and the absence of recorded committee testimony or votes, the available record suggests a straightforward policy proposal with no documented public debate in the materials provided. The bill’s sponsorship and reintroduction from a prior session suggest continued interest among its supporters in creating a youth training wage. Because there are no transcripts or vote tallies, no formal sentiment can be measured from committee action, but the proposal appears to be framed as a workforce-entry measure rather than a broad labor-law overhaul.
Contention
The main point of contention is likely the tradeoff between giving employers a lower-cost way to train inexperienced teen workers and protecting young workers from being paid below the standard minimum wage. Supporters would likely argue that the training wage encourages hiring and job experience for minors, while opponents may view it as a wage reduction that could be exploited or that undercuts labor protections. The bill’s narrow eligibility criteria—under 18, work permit required, 20 hours or less per week, and only for the first 120 hours with a new employer—suggest an attempt to limit those concerns, but the core issue remains whether a special youth wage is appropriate at all.
Replaced by
Order relative to authorizing the joint committee on Labor and Workforce Development, to make an investigation and study of certain current Senate documents relative to labor and workforce development matters.
Order relative to authorizing the joint committee on Labor and Workforce Development, to make an investigation and study of certain current Senate documents relative to labor and workforce development matters.
Order relative to authorizing the joint committee on Education, to make an investigation and study of certain current Senate documents relative to education matters.