Today, February 10th, the opinion of the Connecticut Supreme Court in Del Rio v Amazon.com Services was published, stating that Connecticut requires all “hours worked” to be paid and compensated. This means that time spent by workers undergoing end of shift security checks must be paid, the issue presented in the case. 

Employers frequently set up pay clocks prior to the security screens, so workers punch out prior to undergoing security checks. As a result, the time is unpaid. The Connecticut Supreme Court concluded that it was undisputed that defendants were making workers undergo security checks, they were doing so on the premises, and that they were in control of the worker. As a result, the time must be paid. 

The Connecticut Case:  Security Screens After Each Shift 

The plaintiffs worked at a fulfillment center in North Haven and Windsor. The employer required employees to pass through anti-theft screening that could include metal detectors, X-ray screening of bags, and potential secondary screening. According to case records, security screen times could take only seconds, or could take up to 10–20 minutes. 

Employees clocked in at clocks located inside the building after entering, to start a shift. At the end of a shift, employees would clock out, then proceed through the exit screening process. The case was filed as a class action. 

Connecticut Supreme Court: You Must Pay for Mandatory Security Screening Time 

The Connecticut Supreme Court held that time employees spend on the employer’s premises waiting to undergo, and undergoing, mandatory security screenings are “hours worked” under Connecticut wage law. They also found that Connecticut law does not recognize a “de minimis” (too small or short to count) exception for this time. Some security screenings could take 10 to 20 minutes to complete. 

Why the Court Ruled Security Screen Time is Work  

Connecticut  wage statutes defines “hours worked” broadly to include “all time” during which employees are required by the employer to be on the employer’s premises. 

The Court concluded that if an employer requires employees to remain on-site to complete a mandatory screening process, before they can leave, the time is not the employee’s to use freely and must be paid. This time is part of the “all time” the employee remains in their employers control on their premises. 

Defendant argued calculating and keeping track of this time was unworkable. The Court noted there was no reason an employer could not track the time, noting they could have placed time clocks outside the screening area so employees clock out after. 

Employee Back Wages for Unpaid Time in Connecticut 

The plaintiffs seek unpaid regular time, unpaid overtime, plus enhanced remedies under Connecticut statutes (“twice the full amount”), costs and attorney’s fees 

Connecticut’s minimum wage and overtime collection statute authorizes recovery of twice the full amount of unpaid minimum or overtime wages (subject to a good-faith defense), plus costs and attorney’s fees. 

What is De Minimis or “too small to count” 

“De minimis” is the shorthand for a principle sometimes applied in federal wage cases, when small increments of otherwise compensable time occur. Some courts may treat them as nonpayable in limited situations. 

The Connecticut Court held Connecticut wage law does not incorporate a de minimis exception by statute, regulation, or precedent, and it declined to accept arguments that rounding rules or passing references to federal concepts created one. Rounding was noted to both favor and not favor the worker if applied fairly (rounded down exits could also created rounded down start times, etc). For these minutes, the Court found that this was the type of time Connecticut law set to protect.  

Connecticut, California, Pennsylvania, Colorado and other states now have taken steps to make this explicit. 

California Example: “Control” Time is Compensable, No De Minimis 

California is a leading example of a state that has chosen a broader, more protective approach than federal law. 

In Frlekin v. Apple Inc., the California Supreme Court considered whether employees must be paid for time spent waiting for and undergoing exit searches. The Court held that under California wage orders, the relevant definition of “hours worked” includes time an employee is “subject to the control of an employer”. Even when the employee is not performing productive labor. 

Applying that test the Court concluded employees were under employers control during the exit-search for multiple reasons: compliance was required under threat of discipline, employees were on premises while waiting, and the process required supervised tasks (opening bags, presenting devices, waiting for security). 

The Frlekin opinion noted that the U.S. Supreme Court’s federal decision in Integrity Staffing v. Busk held similar screening time noncompensable under FLSA, but California’s definition and laws result in all time under employee control being compensable. 

California’s Supreme Court has also been skeptical of using de minimis to excuse employers from paying for small work time. In Troester v. Starbucks, the Court held that California’s wage statutes and wage orders have not adopted the federal de minimis doctrine, and that employers cannot require employees to work “off the clock” for minutes per shift without compensation on the theory that it is too trivial to track. If the task is repeatable, the time can be collected and recorded (a 3 minute close down procedure, etc). 

Pennsylvania Example: Screening Time are “Hours Worked,” and There is No De Minimis Exception 

Pennsylvania has reached a similar place as California, through regulations and court orders. Pennsylvania’s regulations define “hours worked” to include time an employee is required by the employer to be on the employer’s premises, to be on duty, or to be at the prescribed workplace. 

In Heimbach v. Amazon.com the Pennsylvania Supreme Court answered certified questions and held: 

1. Time spent on the employer’s premises waiting to undergo and undergoing mandatory security screening is compensable “hours worked” under the Pennsylvania Minimum Wage Act (PMWA); and 
2. There is no de minimis exception to the PMWA. 

The Court’s framing aligns with Connecticut’s: when employees cannot leave until they complete an employer required process on-site, that is employer-controlled time and the wage statute covers. 

Colorado Example: Screening Time are “Hours Worked,” De Minimus is for Under One Minute 

Colorado adopted order #39 to their Overtime and Minimum Pay Standards limiting de minimum time to time under one minute.  Time of one minute and over is to be recorded and paid to hourly workers. 

• No minimum claim size. There is no minimum size of a wage claim, and thus no claim too minimal (“de minimis”) for recovery (subject to Rule 1.9.1 as to certain activities of less than one minute), because Article 4 requires paying “[a]ll wages or compensation” (C.R.S. § 8-4-103(1)(a)), and authorizes civil actions “to recover any amount of wages or compensation” (C.R.S. § 8-4-110(1)) and Division complaints “for any violation” (C.R.S. § 8-4-111(1)(a)).  

The order and Colorado law also outline the ability of workers to recover for missing time, attorneys fee and costs.  Like other examples here, Colorado defines that all time must be paid, defining it as any work that requires minutes of time and requires the employee to be on duty or on the premises of an employer.

• Requiring or permitting employees to be on the employer’s premises, on duty, or at a prescribed workplace (but not merely permitting an employee completely relieved from duty to arrive or remain on-premises) — including but not limited to putting on or removing required work clothes or gear (but not a uniform worn outside work as well), receiving or sharing work-related information, security or safety screening, remaining at the place of employment awaiting a decision on job assignment or when to begin work, performing clean-up or other duties “off the clock,” clocking or checking in or out, or waiting for any of the preceding — shall be considered time worked that must be compensated; except that whether an employer must compensate an activity (or combination of multiple activities consecutively) of less than one minute depends on the balance of the following factors, as shown by the employer: (A) the difficulty of recording the time, or alternatively of reasonably estimating the time; (B) the aggregate amount of compensable time, for each employee as well as for all employees combined; and (C) whether the activity was performed on a regular basis. 

Workers Rights Regarding Unpaid Time and Security Checks 

If you are required to wait in line for security screening, bag checks, device checks, or similar mandatory exit procedures after clocking out, the key questions are: 

1. Were you required to complete the procedure to leave? 
2. Did it happen on the employer’s premises and as part of the employer’s rules? 
3. Was it regular (even if each day was only a few minutes)? 

Contact Schneider Wallace for an Unpaid Wage Consultation 

If you believe you were not paid for all hours worked, including time spent in security screenings, bag checks, or other mandatory procedures before or after your scheduled shift, Schneider Wallace may be able to help. Our firm represents employees in wage and hour matters, including unpaid wages and overtime. To discuss with a free legal consultation, please contact Schneider Wallace at info@schneiderwallace.com.