Is my drive time payable?

[daparo]

What is the name of your state? Live in Connecticut, work in Rhode Island.

I was hired by a company as a Field Service Technician for the Hartford, CT area. With that position I was given the use of a company car. After my initial hiring the company I work for had a hard to fill position in Providence, RI (an on-site technician contract) open up and the two techs that my company submitted to the company contracting us were not what the other company wanted. I offered to be put in for the position. The other company liked me and my qualifications, and accepted me for the position. My company put me into the position effective 1 Aug. I was told I would lose my company vehicle and be partially compensated for it.

My company was originally going to put me in a hotel for a month, due to a lengthy 2 hour (one way) drive time; until I could find an apartment or house in the Providence area. I asked for a cost of living increase due to housing being 23% more in the vicinity of the job. They agreed, and decided not to put me in a hotel, but to have me drive to and from the work center to my house every day (I was given a company truck for month also). My company set a dealdline to be moved into the Providence, RI area NLT 1 October.

I am a salaried non-exempt employee.

Am I entitled to the 4 hours a day drive time as paid time? (I leave my house at 6 am and get to work at 8am, take an hour lunch, leave at 5pm and arrive at 7pm)

Thank You!

 

[cbg]

No, you are not.

 

[WBService]

CBG:

With all due respect, may I ask if you are an attorney? I have read many of your answers on these forums in the last two weeks. Most sound cold and/or sarcastic.

If you are an attorney, I'm guessing you are a corporate attorney as opposed to a Labor attorney. All of your answers (that I have read) seem to slant to taking the company's side.

I'm not saying that's wrong, incorrect, immoral, or even just plain bad. But I would think Labor attorneys might have some opinions that differ from yours.

 

[cbg]

I am an HR professional of 25 years experience. And if you can find any law that requires an employer to pay an employee for their commute to work, no matter how long that commute may be, I invite you to post a link to that law here.

 

[pattytx]

cbg is right. And I am a payroll professional with 27 years of experience.

And if you think cbg is sarcastic, you ain't seen nothin' yet!

 

[cbg]

For that matter, I fail to see how the response above is sarcastic. The question calls for a yes or no answer; I gave her the correct one.

 

[daparo]

I am not offended by the answer

It was blunt, but it left no question. However, if you are not an attorney, maybe you shouldn't give out legal advice. I am ex-law enforcement and will certainly refrain from any legal advice giving. I did not go to school for law, and if you are HR I doubt you have as well. I'm sure labor law attorneys are trained deeply into the law. While you may be trained on some laws and practices, you probably aren't qualified to give legal advice.

 

[pattytx]

It doesn't take a lawyer to answer 99.99999% of the questions on this forum. It merely takes someone who can research the law and read the statutes. Someone with 25 years of experience in HR often has more knowledge of employment law than an attorney in general practice.

Being a rude jerk is not going to win you any points here, BTW.

 

[cbg]

Tell me, would YOU hire an HR professional who was unfamiliar with the employment law s/he was being hired to enforce?

A trained HR professional is MORE familiar with employment law than an lawyer of any other specialty. Not more than an employment lawyer, but more than a lawyer whose speciality is taxes, or real estate. And for the record, I'm not the one saying that; I have been told that by four different attorneys, including an employment attorney. HR people work with employment law every single day.

If you want to disregard what I say, you are free to do so. But I very much doubt that you will find any labor or employment attorney who says that you are entitled to be paid for your commute to work. Here's what one such attorney's office has to say:

http://www.maupintaylor.com/downloads/HR-I29-march12-22.pdf

Since you're determined to hear it from an attorney, there you are.

 

[daparo]

I think you took every thing I wrote out of context.

PattyTX, How was I rude? I did not call anyone names and I certainly did not bash HR persons. I do not bash people. I know how intricate law is from being a policeman. I know criminal law is super tricky and I assume labor law is the same. I would certainly expect an attorney not knowledgeable to research before he spoke. In regards to "It merely takes someone who can research the law and read the statutes" CBJ is not an attorney and he responded in 9 mins, that is very little time to research any law. Also I stated labor law attorney in my previous post, not general practice as you mentioned.

CBJ I meant no offense to you. I never said you were unfamiliar with labor law, I said in depth... That is why they are attorneys and we aren't. That's all no jabs intended.

 

[cbg]

After 25 years working with employment law, what makes you think I needed to research this issue? I know, from long experience, when an employee has to be paid and when he doesn't.

You are entitled to your opinion; however, someone who has worked with employment law day in and day out for two and a half decades has a great deal of in depth knowledge on the subject. You will notice that I do not answer questions on criminal law or on real estate law or on tax law; that's because I don't work with it and have little to no knowledge on the subject. I won't tell you how well you know your job; you don't tell me how well I know mine.

You may not have intended to be offensive but you damn well were, implying that I'm not well enough versed in what I do every working day of my life to answer questions on it.

And if you're going to insult me, intentionally or no, you can get my initials right. There is no J anywhere in my name.