Transportation & logistics
Package delivery & logistics: on-call shifts and waiting time
The short answer
Drivers and dispatchers told to be available for volume spikes are owed pay for standby when the restrictions prevent effective personal use of the time under 29 C.F.R. § 785.17, and waiting at a dock or terminal on the employer's orders is hours worked under 29 C.F.R. § 785.15. Overtime coverage may be limited by the motor carrier exemption in 29 U.S.C. § 213(b)(1).
On-call shifts and dock waiting
Required waiting at a terminal, dock, or staging yard is compensable under 29 C.F.R. § 785.15, and time is off duty only when the worker is completely relieved under 29 C.F.R. § 785.16.
The motor carrier exemption
Drivers of vehicles over 10,000 pounds in interstate commerce may be exempt from FLSA overtime under 29 U.S.C. § 213(b)(1), but the small vehicle exception in the SAFETEA-LU Technical Corrections Act of 2008 restores overtime for many light-vehicle drivers. California has no motor carrier overtime exemption for hours worked rules beyond those in Cal. Lab. Code § 510 and IWC Wage Order 9-2001.
Misclassified delivery contractors
Last-mile drivers labeled independent contractors are often employees under the economic reality analysis in 29 C.F.R. Part 795, and California applies the stricter ABC test codified at Cal. Lab. Code § 2775 after Dynamex Operations West, Inc. v. Superior Court, 4 Cal. 5th 903 (2018).
Facts that usually decide these cases
- Mandatory availability during peak season
- Unpaid waiting at docks and staging yards
- Vehicle weight and interstate status
- 1099 classification of last-mile drivers
Weighed together under the framework of Owens v. Local No. 169, 971 F.2d 347 (9th Cir. 1992): Geographic restriction — how far you may travel while on call; Response time — how many minutes you have to answer or arrive; Call frequency — how often the phone actually rings; Personal interference — what the rotation stops you from doing; Trade or refusal rights — whether you can hand the shift off.
Frequently asked questions
- Is waiting at the dock paid?
- Yes, when the employer requires you to wait there you are working under 29 C.F.R. § 785.15; off-duty status requires complete relief under 29 C.F.R. § 785.16.
- I'm a 1099 delivery driver. Do these rules apply?
- Often yes, because classification turns on economic reality under 29 C.F.R. Part 795, and California applies the ABC test at Cal. Lab. Code § 2775 following Dynamex Operations West, Inc. v. Superior Court, 4 Cal. 5th 903 (2018).
Keep reading
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