(Last Updated On: March 27, 2025)
Employees paid on an hourly basis in Massachusetts have a wide range of rights under state and federal law, including the right to overtime pay in certain circumstances. Yet understanding whether or not your employee must pay you for particular hours can be confusing, especially if you are not technically performing job tasks at the time but instead are “on call.” There are many different types of jobs that involve on-call hours or on-call time, including a wide range of health care providers and emergency workers, as well as electricians and plumbers, repair and service workers, and information technology specialists.
In some of these jobs, employees spend on-call time sleeping on-site at their place of employment (something that is often true for physicians and nurses, for example, or firefighters and emergency medical technicians), while other employees spend on-call time at home or wherever they choose to be. The difference can impact whether an employee ultimately should be paid for on-call time under Massachusetts law. Our Natick and Boston employment lawyers can explain.
Understanding On-Call Time
On-call time refers to any type of work situation in which an employee is “on call” (and thus must be ready to report for work) but is not specifically tasked with performing work duties during that time. Whether or not on-call time in Massachusetts is compensable depends on the circumstances of the on-call time.
What constitutes compensable on-call time under Massachusetts law? According to Department of Labor Standards Regulation 454 CMR 27.02, “all on-call time is compensable working time unless the employee is not required to be at the work site or another location, and is effectively free to use his or her time for his or her own purposes.” In other words, if your on-call time according to your employer only requires you to be able to report for work within some amount of time after being notified — and up until that point you can do whatever you want, wherever you want, while you are on call — then your on-call time is not compensable. However, if you must remain at a work site, or must perform certain job tasks during your on-call time, then your on-call time is compensable.
If you are not appropriately paid for compensable on-call time, you should seek legal advice about filing a claim for lost wages.
Sleep Time Versus On-Call Time
What if you are on-call during periods of time where you are at your place of employment but you are permitted to sleep because you are on an extended shift?
First, the answer depends on whether you are required to be at your worksite for less than 24 hours, or for 24 hours or more. If you are on a shift of less than 24 hours, you are “working” (meaning that you must be compensated) even if you are permitted to sleep if you are not busy at work. If you have a shift of more than 24 hours, then the answer depends on whether or not you have entered into a written agreement with your employer about sleep time. If your employer provides an adequate place to sleep and uninterrupted sleep time, and this is agreed in writing, your sleep time may not be compensable. However, if even one of those things is not true, the sleep time is compensable.
On-Call Hours, Minimum Wage Requirements, and Overtime
For hourly workers in Massachusetts, any compensable on-call time or compensable sleep time must meet Massachusetts minimum wage requirements, and it also must count toward hours worked for purposes of overtime.
Non-exempt employees who work more than 40 hours in a single workweek (or the equivalent for shift workers and workers with irregular schedules) are entitled to receive an overtime pay rate of 1.5 times their regular hourly wage for hours worked beyond the initial 40 hours. If you are not appropriately compensated for overtime hours worked, it is important to seek advice about filing a claim for lost wages.
Contact a Massachusetts Wage and Hour Lawyer Representing Employees in Boston and Natick
If you have the type of job where you are routinely “on call,” or you are assigned on-call time, it is essential to understand your rights under Massachusetts wage and hour laws. Depending on the details of your on-call time, you may be entitled to be paid for the hours you have been on call. It is important to discuss the details with an experienced Boston wage and hour attorney who can determine your pay rights under state law. Contact Rodman Employment Law for more information about on-call time, wage and hour laws, and other employee pay rights under Massachusetts law.
