On-call shift pay
Get Legal Help Today
Compare Quotes From Top Companies and Save
Secured with SHA-256 Encryption
On-call shift pay
At my job we are on-call 1 day every weekend. I work the night shift so my on-call hours that I am paid for are 4 pm to 8 pm. Since many of us on nights revert to a normal schedule on our days off, being on-call drastically effects our day since we could be activated as late as 8 pm. Should our employer being paying our on-call wages for the whole day rather than just 4 hours? It doesn’t seem
right that we are expected to keep a night shift sleeping schedule even on our days off.
Asked on September 18, 2016 under Employment Labor Law, California
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 8 years ago | Contributor
What is "right" or "fair" is not, unfortunately, relevant. You only have to be paid when you are actually working, or are restricted by the employer to work location (e.g. if you had to stay in a "ready room" while on call). But if you are not working you do not have to be paid, even if the *possibility* of working or the interplay of being on-call and your work schedule affects your sleeping or leisure schedule. An employer does not need to pay for life disruption that may be related to work if you are not actually working at the time.
IMPORTANT NOTICE: The Answer(s) provided above are for general information only. The attorney providing the answer was not serving as the attorney for the person submitting the question or in any attorney-client relationship with such person. Laws may vary from state to state, and sometimes change. Tiny variations in the facts, or a fact not set forth in a question, often can change a legal outcome or an attorney's conclusion. Although AttorneyPages.com has verified the attorney was admitted to practice law in at least one jurisdiction, he or she may not be authorized to practice law in the jurisdiction referred to in the question, nor is he or she necessarily experienced in the area of the law involved. Unlike the information in the Answer(s) above, upon which you should NOT rely, for personal advice you can rely upon we suggest you retain an attorney to represent you.