December 5, 2005—The Supreme Court unanimously ruled November 8 that employers must pay their workers for the time it takes to put on and take off safety gear, often referred to as donning and doffing. The court also ruled that the time workers spend waiting to doff safety gear is compensable, as well as the time it takes them to walk between changing and production areas.
However, it did not classify the time spent waiting to don the first piece of safety gear at the beginning of the workday as compensable.
In its opinion, the high court referred to a 1956 case, Steiner vs. Mitchell. Under this ruling, employees should be compensated for any activity that is “integral and indispensable” to the “principle activity” of the workplace, the court explained.
For more information, visit the Web site of the Supreme Court.
