What Are “Clothes”?
Seems like a simple enough question, but it’s one that has resulted in lots and lots of litgation under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).
In a move that generated very little discussion in the employment law/HR universe, the Department of Labor (DOL) recently clarified exactly what “clothes” means under Section 203(o) of the FLSA. That section states that time spent “changing clothes or washing at the beginning or end of each workday” does not constitute compensable time if it is excluded by the “express terms or by custom or practice” of a collective bargaining agreement.
In its new interpretation, the DOL has announced that the exclusion “does not extend to protective equipment worn by employees that is required by law, by the employer, or due to the nature of the job.” For five scintillating pages on what “clothes” are and aren’t, click here.
August 26th, 2010 at 12:21 pm
So do scrubs now fall under PPE since they are worn to protect the patient and the employee? Are they subject to this regulation too?