Travel Time

Generally speaking if your employer requires you to travel on work related business then that time must be counted as hours worked.

Also any work done during travel time, for example clerical work or research done during a business related plane ride, must also be included in hours worked for purposes of overtime pay.

Special Rules

  • If your job requires that you spend a portion of the day traveling, for example between job sites, then that time counts in hours worked.
  • Note that regardless of local custom, practice or even contract, time spent traveling as part of your principal job activity must be included in hours worked.

  • The following do not count as hours worked for purposes of overtime pay:
    1. Time spent in home-to-work travel by an employee in an employer-provided vehicle, or
    2. In activities performed by an employee which are incidental to the use of the vehicle for commuting.
  • This provision applies only if the travel is within the normal commuting area for the employer’s business and the use of the vehicle is subject to an agreement between the employer and the employee or the employee’s representative.

Time spent in home-to-work travel by an employee does not count as hours worked. However, if your employer requires you to perform work related duties while commuting to or from work than that time may be considered hours worked for the purposes of overtime pay.

Examples of such duties:

    1. Providing transportation for other employees to and from the worksite
    2. Picking up supplies or equipment on the way to a job site
    3. Stopping by the office/place of business to receive instructions or pick up supplies on the way to the job site.

The actual time spent traveling to a work related destination is always counted as hours worked if it occurs during your normal working hours, for example any time between 8 AM and 5 PM, Monday through Friday. Work related overnight stays which travel on Saturday and Sunday may also be considered hours worked for overtime purposes.

As a general rule, any time your employer requires you to be away from home overnight any time spent working must be counted as hours worked.In some cases, this may also include meal times.

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