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Privacy & Monitoring Sexual Harassment Social Media Telecommuting Unions Volunteers Wage & Hour HR Central Home
Privacy & Monitoring Sexual Harassment Social Media Telecommuting Unions Volunteers Wage & Hour HR Central Home
Telecommuting
Telecommuting is an accepted practice in many workplaces. The majority of those who telecommute do so from home. Whether working at the kitchen table or in a bedroom converted to an office, these individuals arrive at work via technology rather than the freeways. However, the very technology that allows the flexibility to work from home creates questions that must be answered if the employment relationship is to run smoothly and you are to avoid litigation.
Telecommuting as a Reasonable Accommodation: Telecommuting may be seen as a reasonable accommodation under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the California Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA). California’s disability regulations specifically list “permitting an employee to work from home” as a reasonable accommodation.The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) released
an ADA guidance memorandum advising employers to, at a minimum, consider
telecommuting as a reasonable accommodation option for individuals with
disabilities, even if the employer does not maintain a telecommuting program
for other employees.Telecommuting may be required to accommodate an individual with a disability who can perform quality work at home, particularly when an employer implemented a telecommuting program for other reasons, such as recruiting or retaining workers. If attendance at the assigned worksite is not an essential job function, then working at home may be a reasonable accommodation.
If the request to work from home is granted as a reasonable accommodation for a disability, you probably have the same obligation to make reasonable accommodations for the employee’s home office as you would for the employee’s on-site office. As part of the accommodation, you may also be expected to equip the home office with an ergonomic chair, desk and computer with special data entry devices and Internet connectivity. However, it would probably not be reasonable to require you to make major structural modifications to the employee’s home, such as wheelchair ramps and accessible restrooms.
If the request to work from home is granted as a reasonable accommodation for a disability, you probably have the same obligation to make reasonable accommodations for the employee’s home office as you would for the employee’s on-site office. As part of the accommodation, you may also be expected to equip the home office with an ergonomic chair, desk and computer with special data entry devices and Internet connectivity. However, it would probably not be reasonable to require you to make major structural modifications to the employee’s home, such as wheelchair ramps and accessible restrooms.
Paying Telecommuters: Companies must comply with the wage and hour requirements for telecommuters and must pay exempt employees their full salary for any day on which they perform any work. When an employee, regardless of whether he/she telecommutes, is terminated, California law specifies that all unpaid wages and accrued but unused vacation are due and payable immediately.
If a telecommuter is nonexempt, he/she must maintain a record of his/her hours, including meal and rest breaks. You may also be required to pay nonexempt telecommuters overtime. When an employee telecommutes, you must trust that employee to record hours accurately. You must also determine how the telecommuter will transmit his/her hours to the payroll department.
Determine how you will monitor a nonexempt employee’s work hours and provide the nonexempt employee the required meal and rest breaks. You must record the hours a nonexempt employee works, including when meal breaks are taken.
California’s Labor Code requires employers to post a notice informing employees of the regular time and place of wage payment. However, a telecommuting employee might prefer to receive his/her paycheck by mail or direct deposit, if available.
The California Labor Code requires an employer to reimburse an employee for all money the employee necessarily expends or loses in direct consequence to the performance of his/her duties.
The employee who normally telecommutes and incurs no commuting costs can successfully argue that you must reimburse him/her for mileage when you require him/her to come to the company office.
If a telecommuter is nonexempt, he/she must maintain a record of his/her hours, including meal and rest breaks. You may also be required to pay nonexempt telecommuters overtime. When an employee telecommutes, you must trust that employee to record hours accurately. You must also determine how the telecommuter will transmit his/her hours to the payroll department.
Determine how you will monitor a nonexempt employee’s work hours and provide the nonexempt employee the required meal and rest breaks. You must record the hours a nonexempt employee works, including when meal breaks are taken.
California’s Labor Code requires employers to post a notice informing employees of the regular time and place of wage payment. However, a telecommuting employee might prefer to receive his/her paycheck by mail or direct deposit, if available.
The California Labor Code requires an employer to reimburse an employee for all money the employee necessarily expends or loses in direct consequence to the performance of his/her duties.
The employee who normally telecommutes and incurs no commuting costs can successfully argue that you must reimburse him/her for mileage when you require him/her to come to the company office.
Workers' Compensation and Telecommuters: Telecommuters are covered by workers’ compensation. Under workers’
compensation, if an employee suffers an injury on the job, you are liable for
his/her temporary disability benefits, medical expenses and possibly a
permanent disability award based on the long-term effects of the injury.
Telecommuters have the same protections as employees working in the organization’s office. If an injury arises out of and in the course and scope of employment, the employee is eligible for workers’ compensation. However, it may be difficult to determine if a telecommuter’s injury occurred in the course and scope of employment.It is important to consider the following issues:
Telecommuters have the same protections as employees working in the organization’s office. If an injury arises out of and in the course and scope of employment, the employee is eligible for workers’ compensation. However, it may be difficult to determine if a telecommuter’s injury occurred in the course and scope of employment.It is important to consider the following issues:
- The activities that are considered part of the job scope and therefore covered by workers’ compensation.
- Whether there is a risk of increased workers’ compensation claims because there are not likely to be witnesses to accidents, and the worker may face increased stress due to the isolation and monotony of working at home, potentially leading to a stress claim.