Paying Employees Who Are On Call or Traveling for Business
You may have to pay employees for hours they spend on call or traveling.
Under federal law, you must pay your employees for any of their time that you control and that benefits you. Generally, this includes time that the employee cannot spend as he or she wishes, even if that time is not spent working. For example, an employee who has to cover the phones while eating lunch is entitled to be paid for that time, even if the phones aren't ringing.
Sometimes, it can be hard for employers to figure out when an employee is entitled to pay. This article discusses the two areas that give employers the most trouble: on-call time and travel time. We discuss only the federal rules; many states have similar laws, but some give workers the right to be paid in more situations. To check your state's law, contact your state labor department.
On-Call Time
If employees are required to stay on your premises or at a customer's location while waiting for a work assignment, you must pay them even if they do not spend that time actually working. For example, a mechanic who knits a sweater while waiting for a customer to arrive, a corporate trainer who must wait for the client to gather employees and set up equipment, or a secretary who does a crossword puzzle while waiting for an assignment is entitled to be paid for that time.
If employees must be on-call elsewhere, you must pay them for those hours over which they have little or no control and which they cannot use for their own enjoyment or benefit. If you place significant restrictions on an employee who is on call, that employee should be paid. There are few hard and fast rules in this area -- but generally, the more constraints you put on an employee, the more likely it is that he or she should be paid.
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