Our Clients Ask Us: Pdas

Q:

My company issues PDAs to employees to use for work purposes. If an employee uses the PDA after hours for work does that count as “work time?” Would the employee incur overtime? Are there any other legal implications for using the PDA after hours?

A:

As the amount of employees using PDAs (Blackberrys, iPhones, Smart Phones) increases, an important question arises as to whether the usage during after hours is considered “work time.” Generally, when an employee works after hours it constitutes “work time” regardless of the medium used to perform the work.

However, the answer to whether an employee should be paid for time spent using a PDA after hours depends on the employee’s status. Treatment of time spent after hours depends on whether the employee is subject to the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and the Ohio Minimum Fair Wage Standards Act.

Most executive, professional and supervisory employees are exempt from coverage. Use of PDAs after hours will have no effect on their compensation.

However, other employees such as support staff are non-exempt. Their time spent checking their PDAs, and reading and responding to emails should be considered “work time” and needs to be compensated. This time could result in overtime. The FLSA mandates that non-exempt employees receive minimum wage, plus time and a half for work in excess of 40 hours a week.

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