Jonathan R. Sigel
Partner
Legal Administrative Assistant Jessica K. Rubin
Jonathan is a partner in the Labor, Employment and Employee Benefits Group and the Higher Education Group. He advises clients on a broad range of employment issues, including employment and severance agreements, handbooks and policies, and terminations and layoffs. Jonathan also advises management on proper wage and hour classification. Jonathan represents clients in investigations by the Department of Labor and the Massachusetts Office of the Attorney General. He has extensive experience representing management in the negotiation and litigation of employment and discrimination claims in the state and federal courts, and appears frequently before the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and represents employers in wage and hour litigation in court.
In 2003, Jonathan received the "40 under Forty" Award from the Worcester Business Journal. He received the Samuel Seder Young Leadership Award from the Jewish Federation of Central Massachusetts in 1998. Jonathan has been named a Massachusetts “Super Lawyer” by Boston magazine and Law & Politics every year since 2009. Jonathan was selected by his peers for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America© 2020 in the field of Employment Law - Management. First listed in 2013.
Bar & Court Admissions
- Massachusetts
- Emory University School of Law JD (1991)
- Bowdoin College BA, magna cum laude (1987)
- Advised clients on a broad range of employment issues, including employment, severance and non-competition agreements, and handbooks, policies, terminations and layoffs
- Successfully represented many employers in the defense of discrimination claims filed with the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination and in state and federal courts
- Successfully represented many employers in other employment-related litigation, such as disputes regarding employment contracts and confidentiality and non-competition agreements
- Advised and assisted employers with internal investigations of alleged employee misconduct, including claims of sexual harassment
- Advised employers on wage and hour compliance matters and represented employers during audits by agencies such as the Department of Labor and the Office of the Attorney General
- Provided numerous in-house presentations for clients on harassment prevention and employment law basics for supervisors
Publications/Presentations
- "One on One: Jonathan Sigel, labor and employment partner at Mirick, O'Connell, DeMallie & Lougee," Telegram, July 1, 2018
- "Could You be Liable for the Sins of Your Staffing Agency?" Off the Clock: Mirick O'Connell's Labor, Employment and Employee Benefits Law Blog, July 2016
- Quoted in "New OT Rules Force Small Businesses to Make Hard Choices," Associated Press, May 2016
- Quoted in "Employers and Workers Grapple with Laws Allowing Marijuana Use," ABA Journal, December 2015
- "New Forms Required for Background Checks Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act," Mirick O'Connell Client Alert, January 16, 2013
- "The New Medical Marijuana Law: Must Massachusetts Employers Now Make Exceptions to Their Policies on Illegal Drug Use?," Mirick O'Connell Client Alert, December 18, 2012
- "Two Cases Remind Us of the Importance of Harassment Training," Mirick O'Connell Client Alert, September 7, 2012
- "Department of Veterans Affairs Asks Institutions of Higher Educations to Commit to Unannounced Principles of Excellence," Mirick O'Connell Client Alert, July 24, 2012
- "Beware: Increasing Regulatory Scrutiny of Employee/Independent Contract Misclassification," Mirick O'Connell Client Alert, October 6, 2011
Professional / Community Affiliations
- Jewish Federation's Governing Board, chair of 2009 Jewish Federation Campaign
- Worcester Community Action Council, board member
- Massachusetts Bar Association
- Worcester County Bar Association, two-time co-chair, Labor and Employment Law Section
New DOL FLSA Rule Issued September 24, 2019
The United States Department of Labor issued its final rule on the earnings threshold for exempt employees under the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”) on September 24, 2019 (the “Overtime Rule”). The Overtime Rule will require employers to pay …
[ load webpage to read more ]Massachusetts Legislature Responds to Janus Decision
Yesterday, the Massachusetts Legislature voted to override Governor Baker’s veto of House Bill 3854, which responds to the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Janus v. AFSCME. The Bill relieves unions representing public sector employees of certain obligations, increases their access to …
[ load webpage to read more ]The Summer of Noncompete Reform: Three Other New England States Get In On the Act – Part 2
Following the Massachusetts legislature’s attempt at reform of the use of employee noncompetition agreements last summer, three other New England states – New Hampshire, Maine and Rhode Island –passed their own noncompetition agreement reform bills in the summer of 2019. …
[ load webpage to read more ]The Summer of Noncompete Reform: Three Other New England States Get In On the Act – Part 1
Most readers are probably aware that the Massachusetts legislature, after a decade of starts and stops, passed a very detailed bill retaining but reforming the use of employee noncompetition agreements last summer. While we were the first New England state …
[ load webpage to read more ]Employers Should Continue to Use Expired Form I-9
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) recently announced that employers should to continue to use the currently available version of the Form I-9, even though the form lists an expiration date of August 31, 2019. USCIS intends to issue …
[ load webpage to read more ]More News on the Noncompete Front: Employers Should Still Expect Strict Scrutiny of Their Restrictive Covenant Agreements
In earlier posts, I reported on the passage of the new Massachusetts Noncompetition Agreement Act, which took effect on October 1, 2018. That Act significantly changed the law in this area, narrowing the permissible protections and imposing several new requirements …
[ load webpage to read more ]MA Paid Family and Medical Leave Act
On June 14th, we reported that Massachusetts delayed the implementation of the payroll tax under the Family and Medical Leave law by three months (i.e., until October 1, 2019). At the time, the government informed the public that the contribution rate …
[ load webpage to read more ]Massachusetts Delays Family and Medical Leave Act Payroll Contribution Three Months
Late Tuesday evening, news broke from Beacon Hill that the payroll tax funding the Paid Family and Medical Leave Act – scheduled to take effect on July 1st – is being delayed three months to October 1, 2019. According to …
[ load webpage to read more ]Department of Family and Medical Leave Announces Extension of Time to Provide Notice to Employees
On May 1st, the Commonwealth’s Department of Family and Medical Leave announced that the deadline for the employer notice to employees has been extended from May 31, 2019 to June 30, 2019. The notice, which may be provided electronically, must …
[ load webpage to read more ]A Rebalancing for Wage Act Claims and Class Actions?
Citing three Wage Act cases in 2018, I raised the question in this space whether the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court was now taking a more pro-employer view. With appointees of Governor Baker now holding a majority of the Court, did …
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