California Supreme Court Clarifies Compensable Work Time
In Huerta v. CSI Electrical Contractors, Huerta sued his employer for minimum wage violations / off the clock work. Huerta would go through unpaid security check points to enter and exit the worksite, which involved an inspection of his personal vehicle. Plus, there was a 15 minute drive between the checkpoint and the employee parking lot. And during the drive, Huerta had to abide by company driving rules since he was on company property. Lastly, he was not allowed to leave the worksite during his unpaid 30 minute meal periods.
The California Supreme Court recently held that an employee’s time spent on an employer’s premises awaiting and undergoing an employer-mandated enter and exit procedure that includes visual inspection of the employee’s personal vehicle is compensable as “hours worked.”
However, the Court held that the time travel time in this case was not compensable. The Court held that an employer’s imposition of ordinary workplace rules on employees during their drive in a personal vehicle does not create the requisite level of employer control to be deemed compensable time, where there was no requirement to be at the security gate other than for the practical necessity of accessing the worksite.
Additionally, the Court clarified that because the employee was not allowed to leave the premises during meal periods, under the California Labor Code such time is compensable under the wage orders as hours worked, even if a collective bargaining agreement provides for an unpaid meal period.
At the Law Offices of Eric A. Boyajian, we regularly litigate minimum wage and off the clock issues, like the ones discussed above. If you believe that your employer has not been paying you for all your time spent working, contact us today for a free evaluation.