Paid-time rules for a field timesheet: 8 checks

When you approve a field technician timesheet, you must decide which lines count as hours worked. The eight rules in this guide cover short paid rest, the ban on offsetting that rest, a real meal period, complete relief from duty, job-to-job travel during the workday, California's 10-minute rest rule, California's meal period rule, and Alaska's overtime trigger. Wisconsin's break rule stays labeled as Wisconsin law.

A timesheet line is either paid or unpaid. You cannot mix categories without checking the specific rule for that line. For example, a 15-minute pause is a short rest period. A 30-minute lunch is a meal period. Driving from Job A to Job B is travel. Each has a different paid-time status.

• Short rest is paid. Rest periods of short duration, running from 5 minutes to about 20 minutes, are common in industry, and these periods count as worktime according to Legal Information Institute .
• Meals are unpaid only if real. Real meal periods are not worktime according to Legal Information Institute , but the employee must be completely relieved of duty.
• Job-to-job travel is paid. Time spent by an employee in travel as part of his principal activity, such as travel from job site to job site during the workday, must be counted as hours worked according to Legal Information Institute .
• California rest is state-specific. Employers of California employees covered by the rest period provisions of the Industrial Welfare Commission Wage Orders must authorize and permit a net 10-minute paid rest period for every four hours worked or major fraction thereof according to California Department of Industrial Relations .

Short rest periods are paid time. The Legal Information Institute states that these periods "promote the efficiency of the employee and are customarily paid for as working time" according to Legal Information Institute . When a field technician takes a short break during the workday, that time counts as hours worked on the timesheet. You should mark these lines as paid labor, not unpaid downtime.

You cannot use paid rest time to reduce other working hours. The source notes that "compensable time of rest periods may not be offset against other working time such as compensable waiting time or on-call time" according to Legal Information Institute . This means if a technician works eight hours and takes two paid ten-minute breaks, you cannot subtract those twenty minutes from the total to claim they only worked seven hours and forty minutes. The rest time is separate, paid working time.

Do not mix state-specific break rules into this federal guideline. The scope of this rule is specific to the publisher that wrote it. A sentence about California, Wisconsin, or Alaska is not a federal rule, and a federal sentence is not a state break requirement. Keep this paid-time rule with the publisher that wrote it.

Check your timesheet lines for short breaks. If a line shows a short rest running from 5 minutes to about 20 minutes, verify it is marked as paid working time. Do not let the total shift duration absorb the break time. The break is distinct working time.

Mark one timesheet line as a short break and write which rule you will read for that line.

A meal line on a timesheet is unpaid only if it meets the definition of a real meal period. According to Legal Information Institute , real meal periods are not worktime. This definition appears in 29 CFR § 785.19 - Meal. | Electronic Code of Federal Regulations (e-CFR) | US Law | LII / Legal Information Institute.

The duration of the break matters for this classification. According to Legal Information Institute , ordinarily 30 minutes or more is long enough for a real meal period. A break shorter than this duration does not automatically qualify as a real meal period under this rule.

The employee's status during the break determines whether the time is paid. According to Legal Information Institute , the employee must be completely relieved from duty for the purposes of eating regular meals. The employee is not relieved if required to perform any duties, whether active or inactive, while eating.

Active or inactive duties during the meal negate the relief requirement. According to Legal Information Institute , the employee is not relieved if he is required to perform any duties, whether active or inactive, while eating. Monitoring a phone or answering questions counts as performing duties.

Check the timesheet line for any note indicating the technician stayed on site or remained reachable. If the line shows the technician was required to perform any duties while eating, mark that time as paid work. If the line shows a complete break of at least 30 minutes with no duties, mark it as unpaid. Write the specific rule you applied next to the line in your records.

Travel between job sites during the workday counts as hours worked when it is part of the employee's principal activity. The Legal Information Institute states that time spent by an employee in travel as part of his principal activity, such as travel from job site to job site during the workday, must be counted as hours worked, according to Legal Information Institute . This rule applies specifically to movement that occurs within the workday and is integral to the technician's duties.

Consider a scenario where an employee normally finishes work on the premises at 5 p.m. and is sent to another job which he finishes at 8 p.m. and is required to return to his employer's premises arriving at 9 p.m. In this case, all of the time is working time, according to Legal Information Institute . The drive from the first job to the second, and the subsequent return to the employer's premises, are all included in the paid hours.

However, the status of travel changes if the employee does not return to the employer's premises. If the employee goes home instead of returning to his employer's premises, the travel after 8 p.m. is home-to-work travel and is not hours worked, according to Legal Information Institute . This distinction is critical for timesheet accuracy. The moment the technician chooses to go home rather than return to the shop, the subsequent travel time shifts from being part of the workday to being personal commuting time.

When reviewing a timesheet, look for the specific route taken after the final job of the day. If the technician drives directly to the shop, the entire duration is paid. If the technician drives home first, only the time up to the point of departure for home is paid. Mark one timesheet line as a job-to-job drive, a meal, or a short break, and write which rule you will read for that line.

State labor laws create specific paid-time obligations that do not apply nationally. When a field technician works in California, Wisconsin, or Alaska, the timesheet lines must reflect the rules from that specific state’s publisher. Keep each state’s provision distinct when reviewing the timesheet.

In California, employers covered by the Industrial Welfare Commission Wage Orders must authorize and permit a net 10-minute paid rest period for every four hours worked or major fraction thereof, according to California Department of Industrial Relations . This rest period is paid time. The same publisher notes that an employer may not employ an employee for a work period of more than five hours per day without providing a meal period of not less than thirty minutes, according to California Department of Industrial Relations . If the total work period per day is no more than six hours, the meal period may be waived by mutual consent of both the employer and employee, according to California Department of Industrial Relations . A second meal period of not less than thirty minutes is required if an employee works more than ten hours per day, according to California Department of Industrial Relations . If the total hours worked is no more than 12 hours, the second meal period may be waived by mutual consent of the employer and employee only if the first meal period was not waived, according to California Department of Industrial Relations .

Wisconsin has a different structure for breaks. If a worker is 18 years old or older, the employer is not required to give breaks or meal periods, according to Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development . However, if an authorized break is less than 30 consecutive minutes long, it is counted as work time and must be paid by the employer, according to Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development . This distinction matters for short rest periods on a timesheet.

Alaska uses a different trigger for overtime pay. An employer may not employ an employee for a workweek longer than 40 hours or for more than eight hours in a day, according to Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development . This sentence states when overtime pay is triggered, not a shop billing rate. Do not use this article to set an overtime multiplier.

The table below lists the eight paid-time rules, with the publisher named in each row.

Wisconsin's rule that a break under 30 minutes is paid, and that an employer is not required to give breaks or meal periods when the worker is 18 years old or older, stays labeled as Wisconsin according to Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development .

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Is a short rest break paid time?

Yes, rest periods of short duration, running from 5 minutes to about 20 minutes, are common in industry according to Legal Information Institute . Short rests of about 5 to 20 minutes are customarily paid as working time under the federal rule, while Wisconsin alone pays an authorized break shorter than 30 minutes in a row according to Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development . Mark those short rests as paid hours on the timesheet, and keep the shorter-than-30-minute pay rule labeled as Wisconsin.

When is a meal not paid time?

A meal is not paid time if it is a real meal period and the employee is completely relieved from duty according to Legal Information Institute . The employee must be free from all duties during this period for it to qualify as unpaid. The time is paid when the employee must perform any duties, active or inactive, while eating.

Is driving from one job to the next during the day paid time?

Yes, time spent by an employee in travel as part of his principal activity, such as travel from job site to job site during the workday, must be counted as hours worked according to Legal Information Institute . This travel is considered part of the workday and is not unpaid. Record the drive time as paid hours on the timesheet.

Does the California 10-minute rest rule apply in every state?

No, the 10-minute rest rule is specific to California employees covered by the Industrial Welfare Commission Wage Orders according to California Department of Industrial Relations . This rule does not apply to employees in other states.

Does Wisconsin require a meal break for an adult?

No, if you are 18 years old or older, your employer is not required to give you breaks or meal periods according to Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development . However, if a break is provided and is less than 30 consecutive minutes long, it must be paid according to Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development . Check your state's specific labor standards for any additional requirements.