Am I required to pay for travel time, and if so can I pay it at a lower rate?

With the exception of travel from home to work and back, most travel time is considered work time which must be paid, although pay for travel time may be at a rate of pay that is less than the employee's normal rate of pay.

Travel time and mileage reimbursement are two separate issues. An employer is obligated to compensate for time worked and reimburse an employee for any expenses incurred while performing the duties of the job.

Travel time pay, if less than the employee's normal earnings, must be clearly outlined to all employees in advance, preferably as part of the employer's personnel policy. If an employee reports to the regular workplace and is then required to travel to another site to work for the day, travel time to the assigned workplace must be paid.

When an employee is required to report to a work site other than the regular site, and goes directly to that site without first going to the regular site, the employer must pay the employee travel time for any time in excess of the employee's normal commute time to and from the regular site.

If travel time in either direction or travel time and work time exceeds eight hours in a workday, the employee must receive travel pay at one and one-half times the weighted average of his/her regular pay rate and the travel time rate, if any.

Note: Employers covered under Wage Order 16 Section 5, which covers employees in on-site occupations in construction, drilling, logging and mining industries, requires employers to pay employees their regular pay rate or their overtime rate when the employer requires them to travel to a second location during the workday.

For more information, read Travel Time in the HR Library.