On Call Scheduling in California

Many employees in California are on an on call scheduling basis, from employers who cannot provide an earlier work schedule.

While this is practiced in many states, many employees who are work based on call scheduling in California are filing legal action against their employers for insufficiently paying them for their on call shifts.

Some employees have even complained that these on call scheduling practices have forced them to be available on a moment’s notice, for a shift they might never get paid for.

An example of this would be if employers require their employees to call them to confirm whether or not they have a shift, and that sometimes these shifts are canceled without pay even though the employees made themselves available for the work.

On call scheduling in California mostly affects retail workers, but it could extend to other minimum wage or shift positions. This scheduling practice essentially force employees to make their lives revolve around the possibility of the shift, even though these potential shifts mostly fall through.

Employees under on call scheduling in California often face major inconveniences, as it places numerous restrictions in their personal lives.

Problems of On Call Scheduling in California

Specialized lawyers are now investigating into whether or not this scheduling practice is legal in California, based on the fact employees have no control over their shifts.

This investigation primarily pertains to non exempt employees who are under state and federal minimum wage protections, while exempt employees may be able to negotiation some form of compensation for their time.

This is because the time exempt employees give is considered “uncontrolled”, while the time of non exempt employees is considered “controlled” because it is entirely controlled by higher management.

More specifically, controlled time generally refers to controlled standby time in which the employee must remain open to a potential on call shift from the employer.

In addition, the employee cannot use this time effectively on their own terms.

For example, if an employee’s shift ends and their boss needs them an addition three hours and requires the employee to remain a close approximation to the employment site the employee is greatly limited in this extra time.

Under California labor laws, any controlled standby time must be added to the employee’s paycheck to determine whether or not overtime benefits are due.

According to the California Department of Labor Standards (DLSE), call time must be compensated if:

• The employee is restricted by geographical location
• If the employee has a required response time
• The nature of the specific employment
• Level of impact the on call scheduling has on the employee’s personal activities during the on call shift

The state’s federal Ninth Circuit analyzes two factors in confirming whether or not time is controlled for employees under on call scheduling in California, which is how much the employee’s freedom is impacted and the arrangement between the employee and employer.

Employees under on call scheduling in California may be able to file legal action, and should contact a specialized lawyer to determine eligibility.