If an employee clocks in early but doesn't start to work (goes to get coffee, talks to co-workers), do I have to pay for the early clock-in?

Q&As

• How do I calculate a bonus for nonexempt managers?
• May I change my employees' paydays?
• Our company uses pay cards to pay employees in other states. Can we offer pay cards to our California employees?
• Are we in compliance with California law if we use an out-of-state bank?
• How often and by what dates am I required to pay employees?
• What is the difference between a discretionary and a nondiscretionary bonus?
• What happens to earned wages and vacation of a deceased employee?
• Are employee meetings and training sessions considered hours worked?
• Can an employee receive total compensation that averages at least the required minimum wage for hours worked?
• If a new employee scheduled vacation in a few weeks but does not have enough accrued vacation time, can we deduct from salary?
• Can employees discuss wage rates, working conditions?
• I have employees who get paid commission. Am I required to have a written agreement or employment contract with those employees?
• Our employees regularly commute to different work locations each day. Do we have to pay for their commute to the first location?
• When employees do not submit their time record by the deadline or fail to sign their time record, may we delay payment until the next regular payday?
• Can an employee's wages be garnished by more than one order at a time?
• If an employee works for me in another state, which state's laws do I have to follow?
• Does an employer have to pay an employee for on-call time when the employee sleeps on the premises on a 24-hour shift?
• Can an employer require that all employees have direct deposit?
• May an employer require employees to use their own vehicle for company business?
• What is the Fair Labor Standards Act and who does it cover?
• Does the fast food restaurant minimum wage law also affect the minimum salary for our exempt managers?
• What are some of the issues to consider when reducing wages in lieu of layoffs?
• What are the legal requirements regarding information on pay stubs?
• Do the locally mandated minimum wage ordinances in cities like Oakland affect the minimum salary requirements for exempt employees?
• May I use a manager's bonus pay to meet the minimum salary requirements for the executive exemption?
• Are there any minimum amounts required for expense reimbursement?
• Is there a minimum number of hours I must pay an employee who reports to work?
• What is the minimum salary for an exempt employee?
• If the minimum wage rate changes mid-pay period or mid-workweek, do we pay the new higher rate for the entire pay period or workweek?
• If the minimum wage rate changes mid-shift (like a night or graveyard shift), will the employee working have two different rates of pay in the same shift?
• How much notice must I give my employees that I’m canceling a shift in order to avoid paying reporting time?
• What are the payday requirements when an employer is closed?
• What must I pay an employee for attending a monthly scheduled staff meeting held on a day that is not the employee’s regularly scheduled workday?
• Do I have to pay an employee who is leaving for unused sick and/or vacation time?
• Do I have to pay employees who volunteer at fun company functions?
• Do I have to pay an employee who does not turn in their timecard?
• Do I have to pay an hourly employee for attending elective training?
• Do I have to pay nonexempt employees for travel to seminars?
• Our pay periods run from the 11th to the 25th, with the payday being on the 5th of the next month; and from the 26th to the 10th, with the payday being on the 20th. An employee alleges that our pay periods and paydays are not correct. Who is correct?
• Our payroll checks are no longer negotiable after six months. May I have a policy in our employee handbook warning that after six months any uncashed paychecks will be cancelled and not reissued?
• Do I pay the state or federal minimum wage amount?
• What penalties would an employer face if the employer has insufficient funds to satisfy his/her payroll obligations?
• What is the penalty for failure to pay wages on payday?
• Can we have a policy that employees’ expense claims must be turned in by a certain time period?
• Do I have to post both state and federal minimum wage posters since California's minimum wage is higher than the federal rate?
• How do I prepare for a labor commissioner hearing?
• Can I provide my employees with their pay stubs electronically?
• Can we refuse to reimburse an employee for expenses until the employee submits documentation verifying the claimed expenses?
• Do I need to reimburse employees for work-from-home expenses if they chose to work from home?
• Is reporting time pay always required?
• Do I owe an employee “reporting time pay” if they arrive in the wrong safety equipment and then go home sick after 30 minutes?
• Can I require employees to submit makeup time requests each week in order to create an alternative workweek schedule?
• May I set reimbursement rules by company policy?
• If we pay our employees seven days after their regular payday, what do we owe as a penalty for the late payment of their wages?
• What if the staffing agency I use doesn’t pay its employees correctly?
• Is there any statutory prohibition against reducing wages without prior notice to the employee, or retroactively reducing wages to the beginning of the pay period?
• With the time change coming, how do we calculate hours worked for the graveyard shift?