Most local governments require at least some employees to be on-call to return to work in the event of an emergency. Departments with on-call requirements may include water, sewer and other utilities, public works, law enforcement, fire, EMS, emergency management, social services and information technology. Whether such employees must be paid for the time they are on-call time can be a vexing question. This blog post sets out the Fair Labor Standards Act rules governing compensation of on-call time.
Background

Most local governments require at least some employees to be on-call to return to work in the event of an emergency. Departments with on-call requirements may include water, sewer and other utilities, public works, law enforcement, fire, EMS, emergency management, social services and information technology. Whether such employees must be paid for the time they are on-call time can be a vexing question. This blog post sets out the Fair Labor Standards Act rules governing compensation of on-call time.
Background