Jan Meyers: “H.R. 1227 amends the Portal-to- Portal Act to allow employees to use company vehicles for traveling back and forth to…”

“H.R. 1227 amends the Portal-to- Portal Act to allow employees to use company vehicles for traveling back and forth to work. It is a simple bill, and frankly, addresses an issue which the Congress of the United States should not have to be involved in. Unfortunately, the Congress is increasingly forced to become involved in activities which historically have been left to employers and employees to decide. Misguided and confusing interpretations of current law issued by the Department of Labor have made this necessary. Many industries throughout the country provide company vehicles to employees for use during working hours, and allow the employee to use the vehicle to commute to and from work. This longstanding practice was threatened in 1994 when the Department of Labor decided that employees generally must be paid for the time spent commuting between home and the jobsite in employer-owned vehicles. Prior to this action, the long- settled rule under the Portal-to-Portal Act had been that commuting time, whether in a personal or company vehicle, was not counted as hours worked. So, for many years, this was a nonissue. But after the Department's action--which it later rescinded and replaced with another opinion--confusion and lawsuits reign, and employees lose. Employees benefit by using a company vehicle to commute to and from work. It not only saves them time, but saves wear and tear on their own car, or allows another family member use of the car.…”