Press Release  AG's Office Secures $214,842 from Wilbraham-Based Healthcare Staffing and Home Health Agency and Its President for Failure to Make Timely Payroll Payments to Employees

BOSTON — The Attorney General’s Office (AGO) today announced that it issued a civil citation to Excel Nursing Services, Inc., a Wilbraham-based home care and healthcare staffing agency servicing western Massachusetts, and its President and Treasurer, Rebecca Paquette.

The citation resolves allegations that Excel unlawfully delayed wage payments to 107 new employees until they completed 115 hours of training and patient care. The conduct violated state laws requiring employers to pay workers within six days of the end of a weekly or biweekly pay period.

Under the terms of the citation, Excel had already prepaid restitution to the 107 impacted workers and was required to pay a penalty to the state, together totaling $214,842.

The AGO’s Fair Labor Division (FLD) opened an investigation into Excel after receiving an employee complaint alleging that the company withheld wages from new employees until they accumulated 115 hours of work. Through their investigation, FLD learned that the company did not pay new employees until they completed 65-75 hours of online and in-person training, plus an additional 50-60 hours of patient care without direct supervision. FLD investigators confirmed that the company’s payroll policy was in violation of timely payment mandates required by Massachusetts Wage Act, which requires employers to pay all employees within six days of the end of the weekly or bi-weekly pay period.   

This matter was handled by Assistant Attorney General Shannan Leelyn, and Investigator Matija Zizanovic of the AGO’s Fair Labor Division, which is tasked with enforcing the state’s wage and hour, child labor, and other employment laws.

The AGO is committed to protecting the rights of all workers, including immigrant workers, who are disproportionately vulnerable to illegal employment practices, such as wage theft and other harms. The AGO encourages workers and employers to review the AGO’s Advisory on the Rights of Immigrant Workers, The Advisory affirms that all workers, regardless of their immigration status, are entitled to employment protections, including the right to a fair wage, protection from retaliation, classification as an employee, and freedom from sexual harassment and discrimination in the workplace. 

In accordance with state and federal law, the AGO works to serve and protect all workers, without regard to immigration status, does not ask about workers’ immigration status, and does not voluntarily provide workers’ personal information to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). 

Workers in Massachusetts who believe their workplace rights have been violated are encouraged to file a complaint with the AGO’s Fair Labor Division at mass.gov/ago/fld. For more information about the state’s employment laws, workers may call the AGO’s Fair Labor Hotline at (617) 727-3465 or visit mass.gov/ago/fairlabor for information available in multiple languages.   

###