Hurricane Irma Forces Employers to Consider Effects on Employee Pay

Unlike some states that have rules regarding pay for inclement weather closure, or require or encourage inclement weather days be paid time off, Florida provides little or no guidance to  employers regarding compensating employees for lost time because of Irma.  Instead, employers must look to the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and Department of Labor regulations,  which provide for different treatment of hourly, nonexempt employees and salaried employees.  Further, an employer’s own policy manual or a collective bargaining agreement may need to be consulted to arrive at an answer.

FLSA Mandates Treatment of Employee Pay

As a general rule, the FLSA obligates employers to pay hourly, nonexempt employees only for those hours that are actually worked.  Therefore, if an employer closes a business early in anticipation of a hurricane, the employer is not required to pay nonexempt employees who are sent home due to the approaching storm.  Nor is there a legal requirement to pay such workers if the business remains closed during and after the storm.  Such missed time is not considered to be “hours worked” for determining pay for hourly, non-exempt employees.  However, time spent at work helping the business close or prepare for Irma would be compensable.