When does work time begin and end when traveling, excluding travel time to and from local office?
September 17, 2015・3 mins read
Topic:
While your specific state may have its own regulations, the Department of Labor (DOL) has guidelines for determining which parts of time spent traveling are considered working hours. Here are a number of the key issues:
Day Trips
According to the DOL, for one-day business trips, the employee is compensated for all of their time spent traveling between work sites, but you may subtract time they spend commuting to the airport, bus stand, or train station they're departing from.
Overnight Trips
For multiple day business trips, the same rules apply with one exception. While all time spent working must be paid, compensable transit time may be limited to hours that fall within an employee's normal working hours. Please note that state laws vary significantly from this standard.
For example, if an employee who generally works from 9AM to 5PM were to catch a 3PM flight to Europe, 2 of those hours (from 3-5) are compensable. Working hours apply to all daysincluding weekendseven if the employee doesn't normally work on weekends.
Regarding Time Zones
If an employee's travel will take them through 2 or more time zones, the time from the starting point of their trip should be used to determine their compensable hours.
State Laws
Be sure to check your state's laws regarding additional stipulations for employee travel time.
For instance, in California employees traveling for business reasons need to be compensated for a larger amount of time, including their commute to the airport, or bus station, as well as their time spent waiting to purchase tickets, check baggage, or boarding.
Final Tips
Another great resource is the federal mileage reimbursement standard, which summarizes optional reimbursement rates for travel by car.
Helpful Links:
Paying Employees Business Travel - nolo.com - An easily understood guide to calculating compensable travel hours
Creditable Travel Time - law.Cornell.edu - List of laws defining creditable travel time
Need a hand with payroll?
Ready to use and expert designed, our Payroll Report Templates keep you accurate and organized.
This communication is for informational purposes only; it is not legal, tax or accounting advice; and is not an offer to sell, buy or procure insurance.
This article may contain hyperlinks to websites operated by parties other than TriNet. Such hyperlinks are provided for reference only. TriNet does not control such web sites and is not responsible for their content. Inclusion of such hyperlinks on TriNet.com does not necessarily imply any endorsement of the material on such websites or association with their operators.
