Under the Fair Labor Standards Act, on-call hours may or may not be considered hours worked. If on-call hours count as hours worked, you need to pay your employees for their on-call time. If on-call hours are not considered hours worked, you do not need to pay your employees while they wait.

How much should you be paid to be on-call?

As with any nonexempt employee, federal law requires that on-call, nonexempt employees must still be compensated at or above the minimum wage and must be paid overtime for all hours worked in excess of 40 in any given workweek. Also, employers should make sure to check state laws on minimum wage and overtime.

Do on-call employees get paid?

When Employees Are Paid for On-Call Time

When employees make themselves available in their actual office or workplace for on-call assignments, employers must pay them for the time they spend there.