Employees Entitled to Wages and Mileage Reimbursement for Some Commutes

A recent case in the California appellate court in June found that employees may be entitled to wages and mileage reimbursement if they are under their employer’s control during their commutes to and from work and cannot use that time for their own purposes. If you are an employee in similar circumstances, you may have a claim for back wages and mileage reimbursement. To learn more, call or contact an experienced California employment law attorney now.

Oliver v. Konica Minolta

In this case, employees of Konica Minolta did not report to an office for work but traveled to clients in order to do repairs on their Konica machines. The employees were required to drive their own vehicles, carrying company tools and parts, and drove from their homes to the clients and back to their homes at the end of the day. The employer did not compensate their employees for the time commuting to their first visit of the day or from their last visit back home either with wages or in mileage reimbursement. The employees brought a class action lawsuit claiming that they were owed wages for the commute times as well as mileage reimbursement. The trial court found in favor of Konica Minolta at summary judgment, stating that those times did not count as hours worked under state law either under the control test or the suffer or permit to work test. The employees appealed.

Appellate Court Ruling

The appellate court reversed the ruling of the trial court and found that the employees were entitled to wages and mileage reimbursement for their commutes at the beginning and end of the workday. The appellate court found that material facts are disputed in the case and therefore cannot be dismissed at summary judgment. The appellate court found that the employees might qualify under the control test if they are unable to use their commute time for their own purposes. In addition, if the employees are required to carry Konica parts and tools during their commute then they would also fall under the control of their employer during their commute. Finally, the volume of Konica Minolta tools and parts in each employee’s vehicle is also in dispute, which could limit the employees’ abilities to engage in their own pursuits during their commute to and from work.

Employees May be Entitled to Compensation

This case is one of many that have made their way through the California court system over the years pertaining to an employee’s compensation during their commute to and from work. If an employer has an employee do anything that is potentially work-related during their commute, it could mean that the employee is owed both wages and compensation for mileage reimbursement. If you or someone you know has similar working conditions in their commute and is not being compensated for their time, call the office or contact an experienced California employment law attorney today to speak further about your case.