The Mailbag.

• Date: 01 June 2023
• Author: Davenport, Anniken

Paying employees for on-call emergency duty

Q We are a maintenance and construction company. Our employees are on-call for emergency repairs from 4:30 p.m.-7:00 a.m. When they work, they are paid a flat rate of $400. They go on calls on a volunteer basis and are allowed to decide whenever they want to be taken off the on-call list. Employees are free to swap these voluntary shifts with one another. Once a call is verified as a true emergency, they typically have one to three hours to respond. They clock in when they leave their home and clock out when they return from the call. When not responding to calls, employees are free to engage in personal activities. The number of calls fluctuates, but they generally receive one or two calls every two weeks. My...