Employers with remote, hybrid, or field-based workers should review commute, scheduling, vehicle-use, and timekeeping practices to ensure they appropriately distinguish ordinary (non-compensable) commuting time from compensable work time.
The U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division recently issued two Fair Labor Standards Act opinion letters (FLSA2026-9, FLSA2026-10) addressing when commute-related time may be compensable for hybrid and field-based employees. The opinions reaffirm that ordinary home-to-work travel generally remains non-compensable, but they also caution that pre-commute activities which are integral to an employee’s principal duties—such as scheduling client appointments—may make subsequent travel compensable.
The Bottom Line
Legal questions surrounding an employer’s responsibilities to remote, hybrid, or otherwise non-traditional employees are constantly evolving, and each situation is unique. Generally, an employee’s regular commute to an office, regardless of the time of day it takes place and whether in an employer-provided vehicle or not, is not compensable under the FLSA. Some field-based employee commutes, however, may be considered compensable depending on several factors including the nature of the employee’s principal job activities, the timing of principal activities immediately before or after the employee’s regular commute, and whether the commute is integral, or simply incidental, to the employee’s scope of employment.
The attorneys at Farhang & Medcoff understand the challenging nature of ever-evolving federal employment laws, and we are ready to assist you in understanding and planning for them. Please call (520) 214-2000 to schedule a consultation today.