Off-the-clock work occurs when employers require, permit, or benefit from work performed outside an employee's recorded paid hours. Under federal and state wage laws, non-exempt employees must be paid for all hours worked, regardless of whether the time was authorized or recorded.

What Qualifies as Off-the-Clock Work?

Any time spent on work activities benefits your employer and must be compensated. Common examples include working through unpaid lunch breaks while answering emails or calls, arriving early to set up workstations or prepare for shifts, staying late to finish paperwork or close out systems, taking work phone calls or responding to messages from home, and completing training or mandatory meetings outside scheduled hours.

Pre-shift and post-shift activities count as working time if they're integral to your job. Putting on required safety gear, booting up computer systems, or completing security procedures may all be compensable—even if your employer tells you otherwise.

"Suffered or permitted" work is the legal standard. If your employer knows or should know you're working unpaid time, they owe you wages—even if they have a policy against off-the-clock work and even if you volunteered to work without pay.

Common Employer Violations

Employers violate off-the-clock rules in various ways. Auto-deducting lunch breaks while expecting employees to work through them is a frequent violation. If your timecard shows a lunch break you didn't actually take, you're owed that time.

Requiring employees to clock out and then continue working—"just finish this one task"—is illegal. So is setting up systems that round time in the employer's favor or cap recorded hours regardless of actual time worked.

Remote work has created new off-the-clock problems. Checking email before or after normal hours, taking evening calls, and weekend work often go uncompensated. Working from home doesn't eliminate your right to be paid for all hours worked.

Overtime Implications

Off-the-clock violations often affect overtime calculations. The Fair Labor Standards Act requires overtime pay—1.5 times regular rate—for hours exceeding 40 per week. Adding off-the-clock hours to recorded hours frequently pushes employees into overtime territory.

For example, if you work 38 recorded hours plus 5 off-the-clock hours, you actually worked 43 hours. You're owed regular pay for the 5 unrecorded hours plus overtime premium for 3 of those hours. This calculation means off-the-clock violations can result in substantial unpaid wages.

Proving Off-the-Clock Work

Document your actual hours worked, even if you can't officially record them. Keep personal records of when you started and stopped working, including emails, phone logs, and texts that show time stamps. Write down coworker names who witnessed off-the-clock work.

Electronic evidence is powerful. Emails sent outside working hours, login records, security badge swipes, and computer activity logs can prove when you were actually working. Your employer likely has records of your electronic activities that can be obtained through litigation.

Coworker testimony matters. If multiple employees experienced the same off-the-clock requirements, their collective testimony strengthens individual claims and may support class action litigation.

Employer Defenses That Don't Work

"We have a policy against off-the-clock work" is not a defense if managers knew or should have known employees were working unpaid time. Policies don't matter if they're not enforced or if managers pressure employees to ignore them.

"The employee volunteered to work" doesn't eliminate the obligation to pay. You cannot waive your right to compensation for work performed. "We told them not to work off the clock" fails if the employer benefited from or knew about the unpaid work.

Damages in Off-the-Clock Cases

Successful off-the-clock claims can recover substantial amounts. You can recover unpaid wages for all hours worked, plus overtime premiums where applicable. The FLSA provides liquidated damages equal to your unpaid wages—essentially doubling your recovery unless the employer acted in good faith.

State laws may provide additional penalties. California, for example, allows recovery of waiting time penalties and interest on unpaid wages. Many states' wage laws provide greater protections than federal law.

Attorney's fees are also recoverable, making it financially feasible to pursue even moderate-value claims.

Statute of Limitations

Federal claims must be filed within two years of the violation, or three years if the violation was willful. State statutes of limitations vary—some allow claims going back further. Each pay period where you were underpaid starts a new limitations period for that amount.

Getting Legal Help

Wage theft through off-the-clock work violations is widespread. An employment attorney can evaluate your records, calculate your potential recovery, and determine whether individual or class claims are appropriate. Many wage attorneys work on contingency, taking fees only from successful recoveries.