Not every trip related to your job counts as paid work time in California. Your regular commute generally does not, but travel can become compensable when your employer requires you to travel as part of your work or controls how and when you make the trip. Here’s when your travel time may count as hours worked.
Travel between work locations
The time you spend traveling from one job site to another during your workday generally counts as paid work time. If you finish an assignment at one location and your employer requires you to report to another, the time spent getting there becomes part of your workday.
Employer-required travel to a different location
If your employer sends you somewhere outside your usual workplace for a required meeting, training or other work event, the time you spend traveling there may count as work time. What matters is that the trip is something your job requires you to do, rather than part of your normal commute.
Special one-day work assignments
A one-day assignment outside your usual work area can also make some of your travel time compensable. The key is the difference between your normal commute and the longer trip your employer requires for that assignment, so if you usually spend 30 minutes getting to work but the temporary location takes an hour, the extra 30 minutes may count as work time.
Check whether your travel time should be paid
If your employer regularly requires you to travel for work, keep track of where you report, when you travel and what your employer requires you to do. If you are unsure whether a particular trip counts as work time, an employment attorney can review the circumstances and help you determine whether you should have received pay for that trip.