Wage and Hour in a Wireless World Â» Line Blurs Between Work and Home

Wage and Hour in a Wireless World

Posted on 16-Oct-07 by The Timekeeper

Handheld and wireless devices such as laptop computers, web-enabled cellphones, Blackberries and so forth can make it easier to get work done outside the office. And that can be a problem.

According to a Human Resources Executive Online article, employers face risks when employees start making use of wireless and hand held devices to work outside the office.

Obviously, one risk is when employees unwisely choose their “drive time” to send emails, respond to voice mail or otherwise engage in tasks other than, well, driving. Aside from the risks of injury (or worse) to the inattentive employee, they open their employers up to potential liability if — in the course of attending to the company’s business while behind the wheel — they damage property or cause injury (or worse) to somebody else.

There is also the threat of lowered productivity. It’s hard to monitor what use is business-related and what’s personal. Too much personal time spent on email or text messaging can result in (obviously) too little time spent on actual work. Not to mention potential security risks that can be opened up by employees accessing websites they shouldn’t, or sharing information that should be kept within the business.

But of most interest to me here — and an issue that seems to be often overlooked — is the potential FLSA implications. Do you allow (or even encourage) nonexempt or hourly employees to deal with email or voice mail from home or on the road? Did you know the time they spend on those tasks must be logged as “work time”? And if eligible employees go over 40 hours a week as a result of this time worked away from the office, you have to pay them overtime for it?

Initially, employees are often so thrilled at the “from home” part of “work from home” they don’t pay that much attention to the implications of the “work” part of the equation. And — whether by intention or accident — you may be able to get away for a time without paying overtime for this extra work.

But eventually your employees will catch on. Whether they figure it out on their own or they’re alerted by someone else — a labor lawyer, maybe? — they will figure out they’re owed overtime pay for this overtime work, regardless of whether the work is done in the office or out.

If you have plans to allow nonexempt or hourly employees to access company systems and/or work from home, whether during normal office hours or “extra time,” I think it would be in your best interests to have some clear (and enforced) policies about what sorts of activities are permissible, when and under what circumstances they’re allowed, and what the reporting requirements are for the time worked.

Might even be time to look into some sort of web-based time and attendance reporting, so they can keep track of their time no matter when or where they’re working?

I’m just saying.