Does California labor law require employers to compensate their employees for drive time and mileage between accounts?I work for a company t...

Question

Does California labor law require employers to compensate their employees for drive time and mileage between accounts?

I work for a company that provides different services to retail stores and am required to use my own vehicle to perform assigned tasks. I do not check in at an office, I go from my place of residence to each account usually servicing 2-3 accounts in one day. I know I am not entitled to any reimbursement from my home but is it legal for the company not to pay me for drive time and mileage from store to store?

I have worked in this industry for other companies and was always either compensated for my time and mileage between accounts, or provided a company vehicle during working hours.

I just recently became employed with this company and just realized that they do not reimburse for any mileage and the time driving between stores is not calculated in my pay. Is this legal?

Answer

They are required to pay you mileage if they require you to use your own vehicle. That is beyond question. Whether they are required to pay you for time between accounts depends on a number of factors and would require a review of the details of exactly how your job and work time is structured.