Does cvs pay time and a half on sundays

Sundays

Retail establishments
Retailers may open at any time on Sunday without the need for approval by the Department of Labor Standards, and without the need for a local police permit, except for retailers of alcoholic beverages, which may not open until 10 a.m. on Sunday. See M.G.L. c. 136, § 7 and M.G.L. c. 136, § 16.

M.G.L. c. 136, § 6 contains exemptions from blue law restrictions for certain retail and non-retail businesses. If a business falls within 1 of these 55 exemptions, the following restrictions do not apply. Any retail establishment which operates on Sundays is subject to the following 2 restrictions:

1. Premium pay

Retailers that employ more than 7 people, including the owner, are required to compensate employees who work on Sundays, except for bona fide executive, administrative, and professional employees, at a premium rate. 

Sundays-Retail Establishments:
Sunday Premium pay which is based on an employee's "regular rate of pay" has been reduced from 1.5 times the regular rate and is being phased out over time as follows: 

January 1, 2019 1.4 times hourly rate;
January 1, 2020 1.3 times hourly rate;
January 1, 2021 1.2 times hourly rate;
January 1, 2022 1.1 times hourly rate;
January 1, 2023 1.0 times hourly rate.

See the United States Department of Labor Fact Sheet, where an employee in a single workweek works at two or more different pay rates in order to calculate the proper overtime rate of pay:  https://www.dol.gov/whd/regs/compliance/whdfs23.pdf.

2. Voluntariness of employment

Regardless of the number of employees, retailers cannot require employees to work on Sunday, and an employee's refusal to work may not be grounds for discrimination, dismissal, discharge, reduction in hours, or any other penalty.

Non-retail establishments
Unless a non-retail business falls within one of the exemptions in M.G.L. c. 136, § 6, it is not allowed to operate on Sundays. However, for all businesses, a permit for work on Sundays may be issued by the police chief of the city or town where the business is located. A permit may be issued only for “necessary work or labor which could not be performed on any other day without serious suffering, loss, damage, or public inconvenience, or which could not be performed on any other day without delay to military defense work." M.G.L. c. 136, § 7. Additionally, pursuant to M.G.L. c. 149, § 51A, manufacturers may petition the Attorney General for a temporary exemption from the Sunday work restriction.

Holidays

If a retail or non-retail business falls within 1 of the 55 exemptions in Chapter 136, it may operate on holidays. For example, restaurants [§ 6(42)], pharmacies [§ 6(27)] and hotels [§ 6(36)] may operate on holidays. For a complete list of exemptions, see M.G.L. c. 136, § 6.

However, if the non-retail business is a factory or mill, employees may not be required to work on legal holidays pursuant to M.G.L. 149, § 45 unless the work is "absolutely necessary and can be legally performed on Sunday." (*See manufacturers note below under non-retail.) Therefore, manufacturing employees must voluntarily agree to work.

Otherwise, the following rules apply:

Retail establishments

Unrestricted holidays: 

• Work may be performed without a permit. Premium pay and voluntariness of employment requirements do not apply.

          Martin Luther King Day
          Presidents Day
          Evacuation Day
          Patriots Day
          Bunker Hill Day

Partially-restricted holidays: 

• Work may be performed without a permit. Premium pay and voluntariness of employment requirements do apply. Premium pay rates vary depending on the holiday. Retailers with more than 7 workers must pay premium rates as follows: 

Holiday Premium Pay for Memorial Day, Juneteenth Independence Day, Independence Day, and Labor Day:

January 1, 2019 1.4 times hourly rate;
January 1, 2020 1.3 times hourly rate;
January 1, 2021 1.2 times hourly rate;
January 1, 2022 1.1 times hourly rate;
January 1, 2023 1.0 times hourly rate.

Premium pay required only if retailer employs more than seven (7) workers, including the owner.

Holiday Premium Pay for New Year's Day, Columbus Day before 12 p.m. and Veterans Day before
1 p.m.:

January 1, 2019 1.5 times hourly rate;
January 1, 2020 1.5 times hourly rate;
January 1, 2021 1.2 times hourly rate;
January 1, 2022 1.1 times hourly rate;
January 1, 2023 1.0 times hourly rate.

A retail establishment shall not require any employee to perform such work and an employee's refusal to work for any retail establishment on such legal holidays shall not be grounds for discrimination, dismissal, discharge, reduction in hours or any other penalty.

• Background: These changes in An Act Enabling Partnership for Growth “fix” an omission that was meant to be part of the Grand Bargain. Currently, these three holidays remain subject to the 1.5x premium pay requirement.

        Restricted Holidays:

• The Department of Labor Standards (DLS) may issue uniform, statewide approval of permits for each of the following holidays. M.G.L. c. 136, §15. If DLS issues a statewide approval, work may only be performed if the retailer has obtained a local police permit issued at the discretion of the local police chief.

          Columbus Day before 12 p.m.*
          Veterans Day before 1 p.m.*
          Thanksgiving Day
          Christmas Day

          * If a permit is granted, premium pay and voluntariness of employment requirements do apply to Columbus Day and Veterans Day.

Non-retail establishments (*Manufacturers see note below for special rules)

Unrestricted holidays:

• Work may be performed without a permit. Premium pay and voluntariness of employment requirements do not apply.

         New Year's Day
         Martin Luther King Day
         Presidents Day
         Evacuation Day
         Patriots Day
         Bunker Hill Day
         Juneteenth Independence Day
         Columbus Day after 12 p.m.
         Veterans Day after 1 p.m.

Restricted holidays:

• Work may be performed only with a local police permit. Premium pay and voluntariness of employment requirements do not apply.

         Columbus Day before 12 p.m.
         Veterans Day before 1 p.m.
         Thanksgiving Day
         Christmas Day

* Manufacturer's note: Although manufacturers may lawfully stay open on legal holidays (assuming permits are obtained when necessary), M.G.L. c. 149, § 45 establishes that non-exempt employees cannot be required to work on those days, but instead must be given the option to work or not. M.G.L. c. 149, § 45 states:

Whoever requires an employee to work in any mill or factory on any legal holiday, except to perform such work as is both absolutely necessary and can lawfully be performed on Sunday, shall be punished by a fine of not more than fifteen hundred dollars."

The law provides a very limited exception to when manufacturers can require work on holidays, as follows: if the manufacturing work being performed is both 1) " absolutely necessary" and 2) "can lawfully be performed on Sunday" meaning that "for technical reasons [it] require[s] continuous operation …," employees can be required to work. M.G.L. c. 136, § 6(6). Otherwise work must be voluntary.