By / JP Dowdle
On September 21, 2021, the Court of Appeals of the State of Washington held in Port of Tacoma v. Sacks, that all out-of-town employee travel time is compensable under state law. In the case, the Department of Labor and Industries (“L&I”) issued a citation to the Port of Tacoma for wages owed to four employees following at work-related trip to China. While the employer compensated the employees for eight hours per day for travel to, from, and within China, it did not pay the employees for their time spent traveling. Subsequently, the employees filed wage claims with L&I seeking compensation for all time spent traveling including to and from the airport, all the time spent at the airport, and all flight time. The employer appealed this citation.
On appeal, the Washington Court of Appeals held that travel time for out-of-town travel constitutes “hours worked” under Washington law which therefore required compensation. In reaching their decision, the Court noted how great deference was owed to L&I’s interpretation of “hours worked” and that compensation was consistent with both the pain meaning of the regulation and Washington’s long-standing policy of protecting employees.
Moving forward, this case will result in significant changes for all businesses located in Washington State because now, all employee time spent traveling out of town is compensable under state law. While federal law does not require employers to pay hourly employees for their time spent traveling outside normal working hours so long as the employee was not working during their travel time, this case now requires Washington employers to compensate for all travel time regardless of whether the employee is working during their trip. Accordingly, all businesses with hourly workers in Washington must revise their travel policies to reflect this change to the law.
Any policy should provide clear language informing employees that they are entitled to compensation for all time spent traveling so long as the travel is for work related reasons. Employers should carefully track the time employees travel—including to and from the airport, time spent at the airport, and time spent flying––and compensate them accordingly. This could be accomplished by the employer asking the employee to independently track their travel time or calculate the likely travel time beforehand and adjust for any unforeseen circumstances (i.e., flight being delayed) when the employee returns. If you have questions about how or if this law change will affect your business, please contact Employer Solutions Law for advice. ■
J.P. joined Employer Solutions Law in September 2021 as an Associate Attorney. He comes to the firm with a wide breadth of experience in employment litigation, personal injury law, insurance litigation, and business law. J.P. received his B.S. in Business from the Kelley School of Business at Indiana University in Bloomington, Indiana. He received his J.D. from the University of Washington School of Law. When not working at Employer Solutions Law, J.P enjoys trail running in the greater Seattle area and playing with his Great Dane, Wallace.
