Traveling to events - Are you on company time?

From http://www.dol.gov/dol/topic/workhours/traveltime.htm: "Time spent traveling during normal work hours is considered compensable work time. ..."

Just FYI, a list of local Wage and Hour Division district offices can be found at http://www.dol.gov/whd/america2.htm.

 

The general impressions I've worked under:
If you're driving to an assignment, you're working.
If you're riding to an assignment, you're not working.
If the assignment involves reporting on the riding, you're working.
If you're flying, and aren't working on the laptop, you're not working.

 

You're absolutely on company time. So in theory, I work a ton of off-the-clock time in football season. I have a road trip next month that's a nine-hour drive each way. (Yes, I looked into flights, but with a layover and a stop and renting a car, etc., it was going to take at least eight hours anyway.) I love it when someone will say, well, you had Sunday off. Driving seven hours for a work function is considered a day off? Come on.

 

So, getting up at 4 a.m. to ride and split driving time for five hours to cover an event is not work?

Flying to cover an event but not pecking on your laptop isn't company time?

Bullshit.

If you're traveling for work, it's on their time. Period.

 

Spending one hour to drive 44 miles round trip to an assignment = on the clock + gas money

Spending one hour total to drive 44 miles round trip to your office to work desk = not on clock, no gas money

Explain.

And then cut me a check for the 10,000 miles I drive to and from my daily "assignment" each year.

 

This is an easy one, even for a person of my average intelligence. Nobody gets paid for commuting back and forth to their office. If you choose to live 20 miles away or 200 miles away, that's largely up to you, but you shouldn't expect your company to pay for your decision.

If you're a reporter, you don't have the luxury of driving to the office, parking and going to sit in front of a computer for eight hours. So why should you be punished by having to pay for your own gas to drive to events that you're covering for your media outlet?

I don't understand why there's any confusion here....

 

Consult a lawyer if you're not getting paid. If you are, keep quiet.

 

It's company time, as was underscored this winter when one of our beat writers was injured in an auto accident on the was to a college media op.

Workman's comp, all the way.

 

On the clock. Absolutely on the clock.

 

A newspaper in my general area had a guy once who chose to live in a town about 40 miles from work and then expected to be compensated for it in some way because he was losing money going back and forth from work every day. The first thing they asked him was why he chose to live 40 miles away. The second thing they asked him was if he realized that they weren't going to do that. The third thing they asked him was where to send his last check because if he didn't move closer to town, he would no longer be working for them.

 

Yes, this is always the best way to go ... and then your editor can tell you to go out the door for good.

 

What if you add "with all due respect" first?