Reminder: Tracking Hours for Teleworkers

The U.S. Department of Labor Wage and Hour Division has provided guidance on tracking hours worked by employees who telework. Employers should maintain an accurate record of hours worked even when its employees are working remotely.

As a reminder, “hours worked” generally includes all time spent by an employee between their first principal activity of the day and their last principal activity of the day. Here are some scenarios in which breaks from active work may challenge this general rule:

• Meal Periods: Meal periods, typically 30 minutes or more, are where an employee is completely relieved from duty for the purpose of eating regular meals. These are not work time and are not compensable.

• Short Breaks: Short breaks of 20 minutes or less are compensable hours worked whether an employee is at the employer’s worksite or working from home. An employer may speculate that their teleworking employees are more likely to take a greater number of short breaks throughout the day, however such short breaks still constitute hours worked.

• Off-Duty Periods: Off-duty periods that are longer than 20 minutes may be excluded from hours worked under the FLSA if the employee is completely relieved from duty and is able to use the time effectively for their own purposes. To be considered completely relieved from duty, the employee must be informed that they may leave the job and that they: (a) will not be required to commence work until a specified time more than 20 minutes later; or (b) may freely choose when they will resume working.

It's important to know that the rules governing whether breaks are compensable do not change just because an employee is working from home. When managing a remote workforce, an employer should set clear expectations about when nonexempt employees are expected to work and how they should manage and track their breaks.