Legal Question in Employment Law in California

Overtime pay for travell time

My employer is sending me to a different location (other then the one I was hired to work at) for training purpose. My work location is approx 10 miles from my home and approx 10-15 minutes travel time. The training location is approx 85 miles from my home and travell time is 2 hours one way. This adds 4 hours to my 8 hours in training/work day. My employer refuses to pay for the overtime, stating driving is not work related. I have had other employers either put me up in a hotel during the training and/or pay overtime for driving to/from the training location. They say there is no law mandating they pay, furthermore, if they decide to transfer me & need add'l training, I will have to go. Am I owed overtime for the drive time as it exceeds 8 hours a day????


Asked on 8/19/05, 10:28 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
Michael Kirschbaum Law Offices of Michael R. Kirschbaum

Re: Overtime pay for travell time

Normally, drive time to and from work is not compensable time. However, when an employer instructs you to travel to another work location a distance greater than the usual work commute you make, you are considered under company control and this is compensable. They are responsible to pay you for the time it takes to travel the difference between your usual commute and the alternate location.

You could suggest your employer contact the California Department of Labor Standards Enforcement to confirm that their opinion letters support this rule.

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Answered on 8/23/05, 12:19 am


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