Timekeeping: neutral rounding system is OK.

For more than 50 years, employers have relied on a Department of Labor-approved policy on rounding up or rounding down hours worked when an employee clocks in a few minutes early or late.

However, some employees recently have been challenging the practice. This new court ruling confirms that a neutral rounding practice is perfectly legal

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

Recent case: Time Warner used a popular timekeeping system for customer service reps that automatically began tracking time as soon as employees logged into the computer system.

The system used a rounding process whereby those who logged in a few minutes early or late from their official shift start time might either not be paid for a few minutes if they were early or would be paid extra for a few minutes they didn't actually work if they were late. Over time, most employees would be properly paid. The logs for Andre, a Time...