Paying Employees While They Put on Safety Gear?
Summary
Although its improbable that such issues would arise in connection with simply putting on masks and gloves, its still important to be mindful of the latest legal interpretations concerning more significant gear. Periodically, courts are brought in to rule on whether employees must be compensated for time spent putting on or taking off protective equipment for work. The first two are fairly straightforward: If less than ten minutes in total are needed, courts have tended to rule that the time involved is insignificant and not compensable. For example, if its relatively generic and easy to put on and take off — such as a hard hat, safety glasses or ear plugs —the time will generally be considered noncompensable. For example, if the location where employees do their donning and doffing is relatively distant from their workstations, consider moving it closer to minimize time spent getting from one place to the other.