Paid for drive time?

[tryinghard]

I believe in California if driving a company vehicle the driver has to be paid - but it's allowable to pay only minimum wage - many companies leave the wage for travel alone but some don't. The riders are not required to be paid. I think many service companies pay one way till the end of the day this ride home is not paid.

 

[renosteinke]

Troublemaker? The guy may simply have had a bad experience with a chiseler, or he may have had someone tell him horror stories.

A lot is said about 'at will,' and very little about 'good will.' I wish I could say I always gave a little extra - but the fact remains that the one time I felt it necessary to give the exact minimum, I was working for a guy who was always trying to squeeze a bit more.

Malcom Forbes said it best: Employers who pay the least possible ought not be surprised when that's all they get.

 

[satcom]

Some states may have different laws so check first with your insurance underwriter and see what they require to comply wit the laws in my state the employee has to be on the payroll when he is in the truck driving or riding because the truck insurance is tied to the comp coverage

 

[rodneee]

This opens up all kinds of scenarios.

What if the employee uses company truck to commute for conducting personal business either during the day or on the way to work or on the way home. By doing so he may save time (time he could have spent working) by not having to drive back to shop, office or even home to get his personal vehicle to use for his personal business.

Personal business could be anything from a doctor appointment, to going to a childs school function, picking up dinner for the evening, stopping to use a restroom.

Someplace it has to be determined what is acceptable and what is not, as well as if it is acceptable at what point are you on company time and when are you on your own time even though you may be in a company vehicle.

Rules are much simpler when the workplace is a fixed location. When it varies all the time it gets complicated. One job may be closer to home than the shop, but the next one is not. Then there is traveling to a job where you will not be coming home and have to spend the night, somehow it must be determined when you are on the job and when you are on personal time, yet you are essentially representing your company the entire time you are there.

if the driver is honest he would just deduct his time for personal errands like he would deduct his time for lunch and breaks...if he is not, you will be funding his private chauffer business...

 

[jsmalone1]

Actually I'm hiring a guy to work for me who insists that the Va labor laws state he should get paid as long as he's driving my truck. Seems like a good guy, knowledgeable, experienced, but this could be a deal breaker. I've always had my employees work til quitting time and ride home on their time. Maybe I'm wrong?

That should be a deal breaker!! So if the guy lives an hour away he gets paid?? Not in my world. It sounds like some union nonsense. I saw attempts at 1. couldn't take your company vehicle on the road until starting time & back home by quitting time 2.couldn't haul material in your personal vehicle--like a wirenut. 3. can't look at a blueprint unless I'm getting foreman's pay.--this stuff goes on & on--IGNORE IT Noncompliance

 

[stevenje]

This guy is a trouble maker and even though he may be good, you will regret hiring him.
He will nickel and dime you to death.
Look for another guy that wants to work.

Trouble maker or not, he is addressing the travel time issue right out of the gate. If there is no clear cut company policy stated on this issue and many others issues during the interview/hiring process, then too many assumptions are made on both sides of the table. Other issue that comes to mind is what tools the employee is required to have and who replaces them when they wear out. This tool issue is for another thread.

 

[kwired]

if the driver is honest he would just deduct his time for personal errands like he would deduct his time for lunch and breaks...if he is not, you will be funding his private chauffer business...

But it can be much more complicated than that. What if he is allowed to drive company vehicle to his kids soccer game on the way home? That is not exactly productive time with the company it is a convenience or kind gesture from the employer. Now what if he is in a collision with another vehicle after the soccer game? Is that on company time or not? If not how does insurance feel about paying any claims if he was not working? Auto insurance alone may not be as big of an issue because typically insurance is for vehicle and occupants whether they own it or not as long as they are authorized to drive it and are not stealing it, but it will be a big can of worms if workman comp is involved.

 

[ceb58]

The employee also has to be careful for what he wishes for. If the employer allows the employee to drive a truck from home and back and/or use it on weekends or for personal bussness the IRS can tax you on the mileage that is non-company related.

 

[kwired]

The employee also has to be careful for what he wishes for. If the employer allows the employee to drive a truck from home and back and/or use it on weekends or for personal bussness the IRS can tax you on the mileage that is non-company related.

How does one prove how many miles are personal or not? Even a fairly detailed log book can be totally false, ask just about any OTR truck driver if they have ever made false entries in a log book. It is getting harder to do but is still done.

I don't know if that mileage can be taxed or not but why is it any different from receiving other goods or services from your employer as long as the employer is ok with the idea? Stealing is a different ball game.

Many people have access to tools, equipment, clothing, etc. from work to use at home. Some even can take products made by their employer home if they wish in some businesses. The cost of these things are written off as expenses by employer but are usually not tracked careful enough to show on any records what exactly happened to these goods or services. That may only be look at as bad accounting and in no way is it fraudulent unless the employer does not approve of using company goods or services in this way.

 

[dbuckley]

It is not a hard jump.
He is already disputing travel time during the interview so I would not hire him.

What some see as "disputing", others may see as "negotiating".

 

[augie47]

I'd tell him I appreciate his time and wish him the best of luck finding employment.
If you do hire him, please give us a 6 month report.

 

[satcom]

Hire the nice man he was asking because he worked for a bunch of cheap tight EC' s in the past that did not want to pay their hard working employees travel time.

 

[hillbilly1]

We pay travel except for the first 30 minutes to the job, and the last 30 minutes home. All travel between the jobs is paid. Pretty generous since they get to take the truck home too.

 

[readydave8]

When I had employees I tried various ways.

Most employees didn't seem to appreciate perks as much as money. The ones that drove company trucks home seemed to quickly take it for granted. And ride time seemed to include stopping to buy snacks and such.

When possible I started having men meet at jobsite, of course only works on construction and not service.

 

[kwired]

When possible I started having men meet at jobsite, of course only works on construction and not service.

Why? Is it below their status to sit in the truck and eat their lunch if that is the best place to do so? I bet they have no problem driving to Burger King getting lunch at drive thru and eating it in the truck on the way back to the job or on the way to next one.

Any place that does not allow food in the work area will have designated break areas where food will be allowed.

 

[Besoeker]

Coming at this from a slightly different perspective..

We provide a breakdown service for the equipment we manufacture. If we have to attend to a breakdown, the customer gets charged for all the hours including traveling time to and from the site. Many of the sites are at least a couple of hours travel each way.

Some of our customers have negotiated contracts with discounted rates. This provides 24/7 call out cover and an agreed mobilisation time - i.e that we will have someone en route to site within a maximum time - typically one hour. The clock starts ticking from when the guy gets in his car until he gets back out at the end of the job. If we get paid for that time, it seems not unreasonable to pay the guy for that time.

 

[Nium]

This guy is a trouble maker and even though he may be good, you will regret hiring him.
He will nickel and dime you to death.
Look for another guy that wants to work.

This guy shouldn't work for the OP because the OP's gonna nickel and dime the poor guy to death. How dare someone openly communicate the compensation they expect from employment they should just shut up and take whatever the gracious employer is kind enough to give them. Someone that openly communicates about compensation for employment must not want to work.:roll:

OP make your policy clear and it's then up to the prospective employee to decide whether or not they want to work for you.

 

[CopperTone]

at our shop, the guys report to the shop in the am take the trucks and get paid when they arrive on the job until they leave the job, they get paid for breaks, no pay for lunch. No travel pay. they stay late to finish a job instead of coming back the next day for an hour or so - they will get overtime in that case if it ends up being over 40 hrs in that week.
If driving from job to job doing service during the day, they do get paid for between jobs travel time.

That is just how we do it, legal or not, complaints or not. thats the way it is. take the job or leave it and we dont want to hear any complaints. I don't think that is being a jerk or a tight wad. the employees are compensated well and are taken care of throughout the year. (end of year bonus, company party, free lunches here and there, holiday pay, vacation pay, occasional 30 pack to take home, etc)

 

[growler]

That should be a deal breaker!! So if the guy lives an hour away he gets paid?? Not in my world. It sounds like some union nonsense. I saw attempts at 1. couldn't take your company vehicle on the road until starting time & back home by quitting time 2.couldn't haul material in your personal vehicle--like a wirenut. 3. can't look at a blueprint unless I'm getting foreman's pay.--this stuff goes on & on--IGNORE IT Noncompliance

It really depends on what type of work you are doing and the rules involved.

When I was young I was stopped from useing a personal vehicle on a job site and carrying materials because it was a personal vehicle and didn't have commercial insurance.

Here a helper can look at blue prints but if they are doing electrical work such as bending pipe on a prevailing wage job they must recieve prevailing wage.

The idea is to know the rules for the type of job you are doing and the area where you are working. I can go in a house and work all day without a hard hat but not on many commercial sites and no industrial one's.

 

[kwired]

at our shop, the guys report to the shop in the am take the trucks and get paid when they arrive on the job until they leave the job, they get paid for breaks, no pay for lunch. No travel pay. they stay late to finish a job instead of coming back the next day for an hour or so - they will get overtime in that case if it ends up being over 40 hrs in that week.
If driving from job to job doing service during the day, they do get paid for between jobs travel time.

That is just how we do it, legal or not, complaints or not. thats the way it is. take the job or leave it and we dont want to hear any complaints. I don't think that is being a jerk or a tight wad. the employees are compensated well and are taken care of throughout the year. (end of year bonus, company party, free lunches here and there, holiday pay, vacation pay, occasional 30 pack to take home, etc)

My only problem with that is do employees arrive at shop and immediately get into trucks and head for jobsite or is some work done before leaving for jobsite such as loading the truck or any other task that needs done at shop? Or do you ever have to stop at supply house on the way to job site? Time paid should start when employer required tasks start.