Laws Relating to “Working Off the Clock”

Closely related to overtime pay law violations is the problem of “working off the clock”. Often an employer fails to include all hours worked by an employee in that employee’s pay calculation, whether for overtime or otherwise. In general, an employee’s total hours worked must include all time spent doing work primarily for the benefit of the employer. Employers often overlook certain kinds of work in calculating employee hours, such as: 1) rest and meal times; 2) time spent cleaning, preparing or turning on equipment or putting on work clothing; 3) time spent attending training courses and meetings; 4) non-commuting travel time such as driving between jobs; 5) work performed at home (including responding to e-mail); 6) time spent waiting for a job assignment; and 7) time spent for charity work at the employer’s request. In addition, automatic time clocks that round time and/or automatically deduct breaks whether or not they actually were taken often result in employees working off the clock in violation of federal and Colorado wage laws.

If your employer is violating the working off the clock laws, you (and other employees) may be entitled to a significant award of back pay. Please contact us for a free and confidential case evaluation or simply to learn more about your right to be paid for every minute you work.