Reuters
If you must stand in line for over 30 minutes to clear a security check for your job, is that part of your job and should you be paid for that time?
That’s the basis of a case the Supreme Court agreed to hear on Monday. At the end of their shifts, workers at Amazon warehouses in Nevada had to pass through security checks as part of an anti-theft procedure. Workers said they often spent nearly 30 minutes waiting for the checks, and they should be paid for that time.
Amazon vehemently disagrees. “Security screenings are indistinguishable from many other tasks that have been found non-compensable under the FLSA, such as waiting to punch in and out on the time clock, walking from the parking lot to the work place, waiting to pick up a paycheck, or waiting to pick up protective gear before donning it for a work shift,” an Amazon staffing contractor wrote in a brief to the court.
Update: An Amazon spokesperson emailed with a brief response.
We have a longstanding practice of not commenting on pending litigation, but data shows that employees walk through post shift security screening with little or no wait.
Kelly Cheeseman
Amazon Corporate Communications