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WSU Policies and Procedures

3.62 / Travel Pay for Non-Exempt Employees

Effective
Aug. 8, 2019

  1. Initiating Authority

    Human Resources

  2. Purpose

    Wichita State University (“University”) recognizes there may be times in which it is necessary for Non-Exempt Employees to travel for business purposes. When Non-Exempt Employees travel for business purposes, the work time must be recorded and paid in compliance with Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”) regulations.

  3. Policy Statement

    This policy is intended to reduce risk and protect the interests of the University and the community it serves.

  4. Definitions

    (for the purposes of this policy only)

    • Employee: An individual who, when hired, provides services on a regular basis in exchange for compensation, receives a W-2, and who does not provide these services as a part of an independent business. For purposes of this policy, “Employee” does include “Student Employee,” as that term is defined in Chapter 8.01. Should a Student Employee find it necessary to travel as a result of his/her student employment, the student and the Leadership should also consult all relevant student employment policies for additional guidance.

    • Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”): A federal law which establishes minimum wage, overtime pay, recordkeeping, and youth employment standards affecting employees in the private section and in federal, state and local governments.

    • Leadership: For purposes of this policy, Leadership includes individuals who have Employees reporting directly to them, or Department Chairs/Directors.

    • Non-Exempt Employee: Employees who, because of the type of duties performed, level of decision-making authority, and the method of compensation, are subject to all Fair Labor Standards Acts (“FLSA”) provisions including the payment of overtime.

    • Normal working hours: The hours in which an Employee is typically required to perform work on an ongoing, routine basis. For example, Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

  5. Administrative Procedure

    1. The principles which apply in determining whether time spent in travel is compensable time depend upon the type of travel involved, as described below.
    2. All time spent in travel that is considered work time, as described below, is counted as hours worked and compensable to the Non-Exempt Employee.
      1. Home to Work Travel or Commuting:
        1. Generally, an Employee is not at work until they reach the work place and begin working.
        2. An Employee who travels from home before the workday and returns home at the end of the workday is engaged in ordinary home to work travel which is not work time.
        3. If an Employee is required to report to a meeting place to pick up materials, equipment, other employees, or receive instructions before traveling to the work place, it is work time once the employee reaches the meeting place.
      2. Travel During the Workday
        1. Time spent by an Employee in travel as part of their principal activity, such as travel from one workplace to another during the workday, is work time.
      3. Out of Town Travel – Special one (1) day assignment
        1. If an Employee is assigned to work in another city for one (1) day and the travel is performed for the employer’s benefit and at its request, it is part of the principal activity of the Employee and is work time.
        2. The time spent traveling to and from the other city is work time, except for the amount of time that the Employee would normally spend commuting to the workplace.
        3. However, travel time between the Employee’s home and an airport or other mode of transportation is considered commuting time which is not work time.
      4. Overnight Travel
        1. Travel time or time spent waiting to travel (i.e., waiting in an airport or bus station) is work time when it occurs during the Employee’s normal working hours, regardless of the day of the week.
        2. Travel time between the Employee’s home and an airport or other mode of transportation is considered commuting time which is not work time.
        3. Travel that occurs outside of the Employee’s normal working hours as a passenger on an airplane, train, boat, bus, or automobile is not work time, unless the Employee is performing work during the time spent as a passenger.
        4. Travel that occurs outside of the Employee’s normal working hours in which the Employee is the driver of an automobile is work time.
        5. If an Employee drives an automobile as a matter of personal preference when an authorized flight or other travel mode is available and the travel by automobile would exceed that of the authorized mode, only the estimated travel time associated with the authorized mode will be work time.
        6. If the employer provides hotel accommodations for overnight travel, but the Employee wishes to drive home each evening, the travel time back and forth to the home is not work time.
        7. Time spent at a hotel with freedom to use time for the Employee’s own purposes is not work time. This includes time spent while sleeping.
        8. Time spent at all required conference events in which the Employee is engaged in training, attends a meeting or listens to a speaker is work time. Time spent at social events, meals without speakers, or meals when work is not being performed is not work time, unless attendance is required by the Employee’s Leader.
        9. For employees required to be on duty for 24 hours or more, scheduled sleeping periods of not more than eight (8) hours may be excluded from hours worked, provided that adequate sleeping facilities are furnished by the employer and the Employee can usually enjoy an uninterrupted night’s sleep. If the period of sleep is less than five (5) hours it is work time.
      5. Time Zone Changes
        1. If the time zone changes during the travel day, worked hours are calculated based upon actual worked hours when calculating work time.
        2. For purposes of documenting time in/out on the timesheet, time should be converted to Central Standard Time (CST) for days when a time zone change occurs.
        3. For travel days in which the time zone does not change, the local time should be used to document worked time on the timesheet.
    3. An Employee’s Leader, or the Employee with prior approval of the Leader, may adjust the Employee’s work schedule within the same workweek to avoid additional work hours due to travel time. Whenever possible, the Leader and Employee should discuss the possibility of adjusting the work schedule prior to the Employee’s departure.

  6. Related

    DOL – Fact Sheet #22: Hours Worked Under the FLSA

Travel Pay Examples

  1. Travel Example 1

    For this example, the conference began Sunday night at 5:00 p.m. with a business meeting and ended on Wednesday at 12:00 p.m. The employee’s normal work hours are 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Monday through Friday. The employee worked his/her normal schedule on the days following the conference. There were no time zone differences.

    Sunday

    11:15 a.m. - 11:45 a.m.
    Employee drives to Wichita airport (not work time)
    11:45 a.m. - 1:15 p.m.
    Waits for flight at Wichita airport (work time)
    1:15 p.m. - 4:00 p.m.
    Takes plane flight (work time)
    4:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.
    Arrives at Chicago airport & takes shuttle to hotel (work time)
    5:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m.
    Opening Business Meeting (work time)
    6:00 p.m. - 9:00 p.m.
    Opening Reception – required (work time)

    Total work time for the day is 9.25 hours (11:45 a.m. to 9:00 p.m.)

    Monday

    8:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.
    Conference Sessions (work time)
    12:00 p.m. – 12:30 p.m.
    Lunch with no speaker (not work time)
    12:30 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.
    Conference Sessions – (work time)

    Total work time for the day is 8 hours (8:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. and 12:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.)

    Tuesday

    8:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.
    Conference Sessions (work time)
    12:00 p.m. – 12:30 p.m.
    Lunch with speaker (work time)
    12:30 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.
    Conference Sessions – (work time)

    Total work time for the day is 8.5 hours (8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.)

    Wednesday

    8:30 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.
    Conference Sessions (work time)
    12:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.
    Employee leaves hotel, takes shuttle to airport, takes flight, and arrives at Wichita airport (work time)
    4:00 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.
    Employee drives home (not work time)
    5:30 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.
    Team dinner – voluntary (not work time)

    Total work time for the day is 7.5 hours (8:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.)

    Thursday (back in office)

    8:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.
    Worked (work time)
    12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m.
    Lunch (not work time)
    1:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.
    Worked (work time)

    Total work time for the day is 8 hours (8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.)

    Friday (back in office)

    8:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.
    Worked (work time)
    12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m.
    Lunch (not work time)
    1:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.
    Worked (work time)

    Total work time for the day is 8 hours (8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.)

    Total work time for the week is 49.25 hours

  2. Travel Example 2

    For this example, the supervisor has informed the employee that any additional hours that are incurred will be adjusted in the remaining workweek. The supervisor has determined the employee should leave work early on Thursday and not work on Friday. The conference began Sunday night at 5:00 p.m. with a business meeting and ended on Wednesday at 12:00 p.m. No time zone differences.

    Sunday

    11:15 a.m. - 11:45 a.m.
    Employee drives to Wichita airport (not work time)
    11:45 a.m. - 1:15 p.m.
    Waits for flight at Wichita airport (work time)
    1:15 p.m. - 4:00 p.m.
    Takes plane flight (work time)
    4:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.
    Arrives at Chicago airport & takes shuttle to hotel (work time)
    5:00 p.m. - 6:30 p.m.
    Opening Business Meeting (work time)
    6:30 p.m. - 9:30 p.m.
    Opening Reception – voluntary (not work time)

    Total work time for the day is 6.75 hours (11:45 a.m. to 6:30 p.m.)

    Monday

    8:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.
    Conference Sessions (work time)
    12:00 p.m. – 12:30 p.m.
    Lunch with no speaker (not work time)
    12:30 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.
    Conference Sessions – (work time)

    Total work time for the day is 8 hours (8:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. and 12:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.)

    Tuesday

    8:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.
    Conference Sessions (work time)
    12:00 p.m. – 12:30 p.m.
    Lunch with speaker (work time)
    12:30 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.
    Conference Sessions – (work time)

    Total work time for the day is 8.5 hours (8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.)

    Wednesday

    8:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.
    Conference Sessions (work time)
    12:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.
    Employee leaves hotel, takes shuttle to airport, takes flight, and arrives at Wichita airport (work time)
    5:00 p.m. - 5:30 p.m.
    Employee drives home (not work time)

    Total work time for the day is 9 hours (8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.)

    Thursday (back in office)

    8:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.
    Worked (work time)
    12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m.
    Lunch (not work time)
    1:00 p.m. - 4:45 p.m.
    Worked (work time)
    4:45 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.
    Leaves work early (not work time)

    Total work time for the day is 7.75 hours (8:00 a.m. to 4:45 p.m.)

    Friday (No work performed)

    8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
    No Work Performed (not work time)

    Total work time for the day is 0 hours (no work performed and no leave is reported)

    Total work time for the week is 40.00 hours

  3. Travel Example 3

    For this example, the employee’s work location is in Wichita, Kansas (CST) and the conference is located in Oakland, CA, which is in the PST time zone (i.e., 2 hours earlier). The conference began Sunday night at 5:00 p.m. (PST) with a business meeting and ended on Tuesday at 12:00 p.m. (PST).

    Sunday

    (Travel day, so using CST)

    Actual times shown are CST [PST is shown in brackets]

    9:45 a.m. - 10:15 a.m.
    Employee drives to Wichita airport (not work time)
    10:15 a.m. - 11:45 a.m.
    Waits for flight at airport (work time)
    11:45 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. [2:00 p.m.]
    Takes plane flight (work time)
    4:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m. [2:00 p.m. - 3:00 p.m.]
    Arrives at OAK airport & takes shuttle to hotel (work time)
    5:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m. [3:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.]
    Relaxes at hotel or sightseeing (not work time)
    7:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m. [5:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m.]
    Opening Business Meeting (work time)
    8:00 p.m. - 10:00 p.m. [6:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m.]
    Opening Reception - voluntary (not work time)

    Total work time for the day is 7.75 hours (10:15 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. CST)

    Monday

    Actual times shown are PST as “local” time

    8:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.
    Conference Sessions (work time)
    12:00 p.m. – 12:30 p.m.
    Lunch with no speaker (not work time)
    12:30 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.
    Conference Sessions (work time)

    Total work time for the day is 8 hours (8:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. and 12:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. PST)

    Tuesday

    (Travel day, so using CST)

    Actual times shown are CST [PST is shown in brackets]

    10:30 a.m. – 2:00 p.m. [8:30 am -12:00 pm]
    Conference Sessions (work time)
    2:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m. [12:00 p.m. - 4:00 pm]
    Leaves hotel, takes shuttle to airport, takes flight, and arrives in Wichita (work time)
    6:00 p.m. – 6:30 p.m.
    Employee drives home (not work time)

    Total work time for the day is 7.5 hours (10:30 a.m. – 6:00 p.m. CST)

    Total compensation for the 3 days (Sunday, Monday and Tuesday) is 23.25 hours.

  4. Travel Example 4

    For this example, the employee’s work location is Wichita, Kansas and they are attending a recruiting event in Garden City, Kansas on a Sunday and will be returning the same day (out of town – special 1 day assignment). The employees are traveling by car; a driver and a passenger.

    Sunday - Sam is the driver

    12:00 pm – 3:30 p.m.
    Sam drives to Garden City (work time)
    3:30 p.m. – 4:30 p.m.
    Event Setup (work time)
    4:30 pm. – 4:45 p.m.
    Break (work time)
    4:45 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.
    Work the event (work time)
    8:00 p.m. – 8:30 p.m.
    Tear down (work time)
    8:30 p.m. – 12:00 a.m.
    Sam drives to Wichita (work time)

    Sam’s total work time for the day is 12 hours (12:00 p.m. Sunday to 12:00 a.m. Monday).

    Sunday - Sally is the passenger

    12:00 pm – 3:30 p.m.
    Sally - passenger in car (work time)
    3:30 p.m. – 4:30 p.m.
    Event Setup (work time)
    4:30 pm. – 4:45 p.m.
    Break (work time)
    4:45 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.
    Work the event (work time)
    8:00 p.m. – 8:30 p.m.
    Tear down (work time)
    8:30 p.m. – 12:00 a.m.
    Sally - passenger in car (work time)

    Sally’s total work time for the day is 12 hours (12:00 p.m. Sunday to 12:00 a.m. Monday).

  5. Travel Example 5

    For this example, the employees work location is Wichita, Kansas (CST) and they are attending a recruiting event in Garden City, Kansas leaving on a Sunday; weather prohibits return travel until Monday morning. The employees are traveling by car; a driver and a passenger.

    Sunday - Sam is the driver

    12:00 pm – 3:30 p.m.
    Sam drives to Garden City (work time)
    3:30 p.m. – 4:30 p.m.
    Event Setup (work time)
    4:30 pm. – 4:45 p.m.
    Break (work time)
    4:45 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.
    Work the event (work time)
    8:00 p.m. – 8:30 p.m.
    Tear down (work time)

    Total work time for the day is 8.5 hours (12:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.)

    Monday – Sam is the driver

    7:00 a.m. – 10:30 a.m.
    Sam drives to Wichita (work time)
    10:30 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.
    Worked in office (work time)
    12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m.
    Lunch (not work time)
    1:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.
    Worked in office (work time)

    Total work time for the day is 9 hours (7:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. and 1:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.)

    Sam’s total work time for the two days (Sunday and Monday) is 17.5 hours.

    Sunday - Sally is a passenger

    12:00 pm – 3:30 p.m.
    Sally - passenger in car (work time)
    3:30 p.m. – 4:30 p.m.
    Event Setup (work time)
    4:30 pm. – 4:45 p.m.
    Break (work time)
    4:45 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.
    Work the event (work time)
    8:00 p.m. – 8:30 p.m.
    Tear down (work time)

    Total work time for the day is 8.5 hours (12:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.)

    Monday – Sally is a passenger

    7:00 a.m. – 8:00 a.m.
    Sally - passenger in car (not work time)
    8:00 a.m. to 10:30 a.m.
    Sally - passenger in car (work time)
    10:30 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.
    Worked in office (work time)
    12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m.
    Lunch (not work time)
    1:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.
    Worked in office (work time)

    Total work time for the day is 8 hours (8:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. and 1:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.)

    Sally’s total work time for the two days (Sunday and Monday) is 16.5 hours.

  6. Travel Example 6

    The employee is attending a professional meeting in Chicago. They will travel by airplane and no overnight travel will be involved. For this example, the employee’s normal work hours are 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Monday through Friday.

    5:00 a.m. – 5:30 a.m.
    Travel to airport (not work time)
    5:30 a.m. – 6:00 a.m.
    Waits for flight (work time)
    6:00 a.m. – 7:00 a.m.
    Flight to Chicago (work time)
    7:00 a.m. – 8:00 a.m.
    Leave airport and take taxi to meeting place (work time)
    8:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.
    Meeting with working lunch (work time)
    2:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.
    Travel to airport (work time)
    4:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.
    Wait for flight (work time)
    5:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m.
    Flight to Wichita (work time)
    6:00 p.m. – 6:30 p.m.
    Travel home (not work time)

    Total work time for the day is 11.5 hours (5:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.)

About this policy version

Initiating Authority

Human Resources Business Partners.

Summary of Policy or Policy Change

To provide guidelines of when non-exempt employees are traveling and when that time is considered recorded work-time.

Reason or Need for Policy

To establish clear guidelines for travel pay to non-exempt employees.

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