For most non-exempt employees, the Fair Labor Standards Act considers time spent traveling during the working day to be compensable working time. Last week, the Third Circuit Court of Appeals applied this principle to travel...more
In Walters v. Professional Labor Group, LLC, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit will decide whether employee travel time to and from remote jobsites that requires an overnight stay is compensable....more
Employers based outside of California can suffer knockout blows if they enter the ring as employers in California and operate under the mistaken assumption that adherence to the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”) is the same...more
In a decision on July 13, 2022, Maryland’s highest court held that the federal Portal-to-Portal Act has not been adopted or incorporated into Maryland wage laws or regulations. As a result, “what constitutes ‘work’ under...more
I am very interested in travel time cases. There are some nuanced concepts hovering around travel time, especially the concept of what constitutes non-compensable home-to-work travel. In an interesting case, a possible...more
As COVID-19 restrictions have continued to loosen or be lifted altogether, employees have gradually resumed working in the office—and traveling away from it for work-related reasons. When it comes to travel time in the...more
I had blogged about this case some months ago and am interested in following it through. Now, a Judge has granted conditional certification to a class of oil and gas industry employees who are seeking pay for their travel...more
Whether to pay any travel time for employees under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) can be complicated. Employees who believe they should be compensated for that time often challenge non-payment. A dispute over travel time...more
I always tell clients they must comply with both federal and state law, whatever State they are situate in, that complying with one is not a defense to not complying with the other, tougher, law. A sterling example of this...more
While the focus of the Department of Labor ebbs and flows based on the administration, the DOL remains committed to enforcing the Fair Labor Standards Act. Now that we know that Secretary of Labor Marty Walsh is in place, we...more
According to U.S. Department of Labor regulations issued under the Fair Labor Standards Act, if a non-exempt employee reports to work in the morning and then travels during the working day to another worksite, that travel...more
On the last day of 2020, the US Department of Labor (DOL) issued an opinion letter impacting employers using telework arrangements in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. While a vaccine is now rolling out and we will hopefully...more
DOL Issues Guidance Regarding Compensable Time for Time Spent Traveling - The Department of Labor closed probably one of the most challenging years in the labor and employment law world by issuing an opinion letter...more
On December 31, 2020, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division (WHD) issued two opinion letters—one on home-to-office travel time and one on live-in caregivers. Such “lame duck” opinion letters—issued...more
The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) issued two Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) opinion letters on December 31, 2020. One of those letters addresses travel time that occurs when employees schedule personal appointments during...more
On December 31, 2020, the Administrator of the Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division issued an opinion letter addressing whether certain travel time that occurs on a partial telework day is compensable under the FLSA....more
I blogged the other day about a USDOL travel time Opinion Letter for the construction industry and foremen in that industry. The employer seeking the advice posed three scenarios and wanted answers about the foremen and the...more
I have stated many times that I am pleased that the USDOL has taken again to issuing Opinion Letters which guide employers in complying with the Fair Labor Standards Act. I am particularly happy that the agency has issued an...more
The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) published an opinion letter, FLSA 2020-16, considering whether the travel time of foremen and laborers is compensable in three different scenarios. The DOL makes clear that, for some...more
On November 3, 2020, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division (“WHD”) issued new opinion letters addressing the compensability of time spent by employees attending voluntary training programs and in work-related...more
As cities and states around the United States are gearing to reopen facilities, employers are tasked with the daunting responsibility of ensuring that their workspaces are safe. ...more
What is considered compensable travel time pursuant to the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”) is not always clear or intuitive to employers, even for those who usually have a good handle on wage and hour laws. This blog post...more
There may be instances where non-exempt employees are required to travel for business. This is a common practice in the fashion industry where regular trips to factories throughout the world are a regular part of the...more
Working time claims/lawsuits take many forms and often arise out of seemingly unlikely circumstances. In a recent case, the Third Circuit ruled that temporary workers brought in to take over the jobs of locked out workers...more
The Eleventh Circuit recently affirmed the district court’s grant of summary judgment to two Florida counties in an action brought against former sheriff deputies under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and Florida Minimum...more