Takeaways

• Two DOL opinion letters explain how “mid-day” commuting for hybrid workers who voluntarily split their workday is not compensable travel time.
• Travel time becomes compensable when the employer, rather than the employee, controls the timing and requires substantial work immediately before and after the commute.
• The opinion letters provide a detailed history of the evolution of what is considered “work” under the FLSA.

Related links

Article

A recent pair of Department of Labor (DOL) opinion letters issued by the Wage and Hour Division (WHD) discuss when employee travel between home and work counts as compensable “hours worked” under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). The letters address similar factual scenarios, but they reach different conclusions as to whether the time is compensable. It is important for employers to understand the reasoning behind these results.

The opinion letters also provide a detailed history of the evolution of what is considered “work” under the FLSA.

Mid-Day Commuting is Not Compensable

FLSA2026-9 considers non-exempt employees who want to split their workday between home and office. The employer does not allow employees flexibility to begin their commute after the morning rush (and work from home prior to commuting) or begin their commute home earlier to avoid the evening rush because the employer fears that it would have to pay employees for the time spent in their mid-day commute under the “continuous workday” principle, since...

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