U.S. Labor Department Issues New Information On Teleworking For Manufacturers

While U.S. states started to reopen their economies this summer, most local policymakers continue to urge companies to allow workers who can to work remotely. To help manufacturers and other employers understand their requirements and obligations under the Fair Labor Standards Act, on August 24, the U.S. Department of Labor’s (DOL) Wage and Hour Division issued a Field Assistance Bulletin.

The bulletin clarifies how to compensate employees for the hours in which work is performed while teleworking. Broadly, the DOL reminded employers that they must pay employees for all hours in which work was performed or if they have reason to believe that work was performed, even if the work was not requested. The guidance explains, “One way an employer may exercise such diligence is by providing a reasonable reporting procedure for non- scheduled time and then compensating employees for all reported hours of work, even hours not requested by the employer.

If an employee fails to report unscheduled hours worked through such a procedure, the employer is not required to undergo impractical efforts to investigate further to uncover unreported hours of work and provide compensation for those hours.”

Click here to read the full bulletin.