Pre-Shift and Post-Shift Unpaid Wages

Pre-shift work is an area where employers may believe they do not have to pay employees. For example, certain employers think that pre-shift meetings do not qualify as working and subsequently do not reimburse employees for that time.

Other employers believe pre-shift work, like prepping a kitchen prior to opening a restaurant or having staff show up for a brief in-house meeting in the customer service field, does not qualify as work and is therefore not compensable. These employers are wrong.

It is illegal for employers not to compensate employees for the time they spend working, and this includes pre-and-post-shift work. However, if an employee shows up for a non-mandatory training session, lecture, or meeting on their own time, and it takes place outside of their regular work hours, it is not considered job-related and the employee would not be compensated.

Job related activities that employees perform such as cleaning work areas, breaking down equipment, and filling our inspection reports are considered by the FLSA to be work-related responsibilities. Therefore, employers should pay employees for these duties. Employers who have their employees clock out before employees finish their post-shift work are not acting within the law. While it may not seem like a large amount of time, pre-and post-shift work that is unpaid can accumulate quickly.

Employees who experience this type of unethical behavior from their employers should seek legal counsel. The Chicago labor and employment violation lawyers at our law firm may be able to help employees obtain the unpaid wages from pre-shift and post-shift work they completed.

While any industry can have employers who violate employees’ rights regarding wages, certain fields seem to be more prevalent with violations, including: