For employers who want to offer split schedules to hourly staff, this letter removes a significant obstacle, provided the arrangement is structured correctly.
The Labor Department’s Wage and Hour Division (WHD) issued Opinion Letter Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) 2026-9 on July 22, concluding that when a non-exempt employee voluntarily splits a workday between home and the office, the mid-day commute generally remains unpaid “ordinary” travel, even if the employee performs compensable work at home before or after the trip. WHD clarified that the ordinary commute constitutes a third category of time during the workday that is not “hours worked,” in addition to bona fide meal breaks and off-duty time. For employers who want to offer split schedules to hourly staff, this letter removes a significant obstacle, provided the arrangement is structured correctly.
Employers have generally understood two FLSA rules: An employee’s normal start- or end-of-day commute is not compensable; and travel between job sites during the workday is compensable. What remained unclear was whether an employee’s home becomes a “job site” once actual work is performed there, converting any mid-day commute into paid travel.
This ambiguity led many employers to prohibit non-exempt employees from splitting their workday between home and the office, even when employees wanted that flexibility. FLSA2026-9 addresses this issue directly.
WHD analyzed three scenarios involving non-exempt employees who...
The rapper's agency said recent allegations shared online were fabricated, and filed a criminal complaint against the accuser. Rapper Yang Hong-won's agency has denied allegations that he cheated o...