Re: New EC in Northern NJ, needs help!
I think what he is saying is:
that he has to pay them until they return the truck to the shop -- at which point they are then free to go whereever they want, since they are then on their own time and are no longer on his payroll.
Until they return the truck to the shop, they aren't free to go wherever they want.
I've seen this same interpretation and enforcement before under the federal labor laws by the US Department of Labor.
The decisions that I have seen from the DOL say that if they are riding in your truck, then they are on your payroll, both driving to and from the office. (However, their time does stop when they are on break or sitting in a burger joint getting lunch. I think you'd be better off not paying them for a half-hour lunch and 2 - 15 minute breaks, but do pay them for their return drive to your shop.)
We got into this argument with the DOL over letting foremen take their trucks home with them -- and we lost. We had to pay them from the time they left their home, until they returned home. This was a few years ago, so there may be some new laws or decisions that change it, but we had to pay their back wages at that time.
In a couple of cases (on new construction), there was a crew that met at the foreman's house and they all rode to the jobsite together in our truck. We had to pay all of that crew's back wages, too, from the foreman's house until they returned to the foreman's house. The DOL said that payroll started and ended at the foreman's house, since that was where they got on and off our truck.
After that, we tried to always make a deal with the foreman for him to use his own truck, and we paid him a monthly "truck allowance". He would use his own truck to make an occasional run to the supply house, if it was unavoidable.
The rest of the work crew had to meet at the jobsite, and it was up to them how they got there. Everyone's time began and ended on the jobsite, at regular starting and quiting times.
Going through a DOL audit can be pretty rough.
It all started with one electrician who kept a daily log, and after a little over a year, filed a complaint with the DOL saying that he wasn't being paid for all of his hours and overtime. We paid him, and we paid everyone else, too. Several of our electricians argued with the DOL that it wasn't right, they didn't want the money, and it would end up costing them a free ride to the jobsite -- but the DOL still directed us to pay all of them.
Be sure you understand all of the current labor laws, since they can bite you. Check with an experienced labor law attorney if you think that you might have much exposure.
Also, be very careful if you pay any of your people as Contract Labor . That is a whole other can of worms that can cost you -- big time. You run the very real risk of having to pay any income and other taxes that they don't pay themselves -- even back taxes. This can easily run into 5 figures for just one man for just one year. Multiply that by however many men and years that you are doing it. Go over the laws with an experienced labor law attorney if you are thinking about doing this -- if you just do what seems right, you will almost certainly mess up and eventually pay for it.
[ April 13, 2005, 01:52 AM: Message edited by: tx2step ]
