Many employees spend time traveling as part of their job, including driving to a job site, transporting tools and equipment, or traveling overnight for a work assignment. The question employees often ask is straightforward: Should I be paid for that time?

The answer depends on the type of travel involved, and whether you are subject to federal law, Pennsylvania law, or both.  In many cases, Pennsylvania law provides broader protections than the federal standard, meaning you may be entitled to pay that your employer is not providing.

Pennsylvania Law: Broader Protections for Workers

The Pennsylvania Minimum Wage Act provides a definition of “hours worked” that is broader and more protective of workers than federal law.

Under Pennsylvania law, hours worked includes all time during which an employee is required to be on the employer’s premises, on duty, or at a prescribed work place. Critically, hours worked also includes time spent traveling as part of the duties of an employee during normal working hours.

To determine whether travel time is compensable under Pennsylvania law, courts apply a two-part test: (1) whether the travel was part of the employee’s duties, and (2) whether the travel occurred during the employee’s normal working hours.  Importantly, “normal working hours” under Pennsylvania law is not limited to an employee’s scheduled shift, and can include time outside of an employee’s actual scheduled hours.

What Types of Travel May Be Compensable Under Pennsylvania Law

The following types of travel time may constitute compensable time worked under Pennsylvania law:

• Driving a company vehicle to and from a job site while transporting company tools, supplies, or equipment.
• Transporting coworkers to and from job sites as a required part of the job.
• Traveling between job sites during the workday.
• Traveling from a central reporting location to a worksite.

Whether travel time qualifies as a “duty” under Pennsylvania law does not depend solely on a formal job description or employment agreement.  Courts look at the entire employment relationship, including what employees were actually required to do, whether they were provided company vehicles or equipment, and whether the employer directed or controlled their activities during that time.

Federal Law: Travel Time Rules Under the FLSA

The federal Fair Labor Standards Act, as amended by the Portal-to-Portal Act, takes a narrower approach to travel time than Pennsylvania law.  Under the federal framework, ordinary commuting time is not compensable, and employers are generally not required to pay for travel that occurs before the workday begins or after it ends. Travel time is compensable under federal law primarily when it occurs during the workday (such as travel between job sites) or when an employee is required to perform work while traveling.  As a result, workers whose travel time claims may not be viable under federal law may nonetheless have strong claims under the broader protections afforded by the Pennsylvania Minimum Wage Act.

What Is Generally Not Compensable: The Ordinary Commute

Under both federal law and Pennsylvania law, ordinary commuting time — the time you spend driving from your home to your regular, fixed workplace at the start of the day, and back home at the end of the day — is generally not compensable.

However, this general rule has limits.  When an employer requires an employee to perform job duties during the commute, such as transporting company tools, equipment, or coworkers, the nature of that travel may change.  Courts look beyond the label of “commute” and examine what the employee was actually required to do, and whether those requirements transformed the travel into compensable work time under Pennsylvania or federal law.

Why This Matters: Small Amounts Add Up

Even a relatively short period of uncompensated travel time per day can result in significant unpaid wages over the course of weeks, months, or years.  If unpaid travel time pushes your total hours over 40 in a workweek, your employer may also owe you unpaid overtime at one and one-half times your regular rate of pay.

In workplaces where travel policies affect groups of employees in the same way, unpaid travel time claims may be brought as collective or class actions, allowing many workers to recover unpaid wages together.

What You May Be Entitled to Recover

Employees who have not been paid for compensable travel time may be entitled to recover:

• Unpaid wages at their regular rate.
• Unpaid overtime at one and one-half times their regular rate.
• Liquidated damages, which can double the amount of unpaid wages owed.
• Attorneys’ fees and costs.

If You Have Questions About Unpaid Travel Time

Travel time rules are fact-specific. Whether your travel time is compensable depends on when it occurs, what you are required to do during that time, and whether you are subject to federal law, Pennsylvania law, or both.

Wood Legal represents employees in wage and hour matters throughout Pennsylvania. If you believe you are not being paid for travel time you are legally entitled to be compensated for, contact us to discuss your situation.