Questions and Answers on Library Law:
The Fair Labor Standards Act, Part III

Scott Uhler, Janet Petsche, Rinda Allison and Kathleen Henn

This column appears regularly in Illinois Libraries and addresses commonly asked questions on library law. If you have questions you would like addressed in this column, please send them to: "Q and A on Library Law," Illinois Libraries, at the address on the title page of this issue. While we are not necessarily able to answer all questions, we will try to address those issues that are of most concern to the greatest number of libraries. In Part 1 of this discussion, we addressed the issue of which employees are covered under the Fair Labor Standards Act ("FLSA"). In Part 2, we addressed whether employees must be compensated for training time and for overtime. This column continues with Part 3 of a discussion of the Fair Labor Standards Act, and it focuses on whether training is "directly related" to an employee's job and on whether training required by law is compensable.

Q: When is training time non-compensable?

A: As discussed in Part 2, an employee does not need to be compensated if the training time meets the following four factors:

1. attendance at the training occurs outside the employee's regular working hours;

2. attendance is voluntary (described in more detail below);

3. the employee does not perform any productive work during attendance at the training; and

4. the course is not directly related to the employee's job.

Q: What kind of training would be considered "directly related" to a library employee's job?

A: Training is directly related to the employee's job if it is designed to make the employee handle his/her job more effectively as opposed to training him/her for another job or a new or additional skill. As stated in Part 2 of our discussion of the FLSA, an employee would not be entitled to compensation for training he/she voluntarily attended outside of regular working hours and that did not include productive work for the employer, even if the training makes the employee more efficient in his/her job duties. The employee would only be entitled to compensation if the training was not considered voluntary because he/she was led to believe that the training was expected to be undertaken as a condition of employment.

Q: What are some examples of training that is directly related?

A: If a library employee takes a computer course that involves training regarding a computer program that the library uses, that training is directly related. By virtue of taking the class, the employee will become more proficient at the use of the computer program and will become more efficient in his/her job.

Q: When is training not directly related to the employee's job?

A: If the training is given for the bona fide purpose of preparing an employee for advancement by upgrading the employee to a higher skill and is not intended to make the employee more efficient in his/her current position, the training is not considered directly related even though the training has the incidental affect of improving the employee's skill in his/her regular work.

Q: What are some examples of training that is not directly related?

A: If the library offers off-duty training to its employees in preparation for advancement to supervisory responsibility or other career development, the time spent in that training is not directly related. Because the purpose of the training is to upgrade the

* Scott Uhler and Janet Petsche, are partners and Rinda Allison and Kathleen Henn are associates with the law firm of Klein, Thorpe and Jenkins, Ltd., with offices in downtown Chicago and Orland Park. The firm concentrates in the representation of public libraries and library districts in Illinois as well as other local governmental units.

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employee to a higher skill and not to make the employee more efficient in his/her present job, the training is not directly related to the employee's current job. As long as the training is voluntary, occurs outside of the employee's work hours and the employee does not perform productive work while at the training, the time will not be compensable.

For example, if an employee who works in the cataloging department takes a course in personnel management, that course would not be directly related to the employee's current job duties. Also, if a reference librarian takes a class in children's book purchasing, the class is not directly related to the employee's job. Therefore, the time spent in attendance at these courses would not be compensable.

Q: If the training is required by law, is it compensable?

A: Probably not. For example, if an employee of a library is required by state or county law to take continuing education requirements to maintain a state certification, the time spent in training is not compensable. The employee need not be paid for the hours spent outside of regular working hours attending the course, even if the employer pays for the course. The employee is not entitled to compensation for the time because the employee is the real beneficiary of the training. The training time allows the employee to continue in his/her current job and to work in that job for any employer. The employee is not entitled to compensation if the training is specialized or follow-up training and if the requirement applies to all public and private sector employees or if the training is required by a higher level of government. Additionally, the employee's attendance at the training is considered voluntary because the employer does not mandate the employee's attendance at the training. Rather, the employee is mandated by the local, state or federal law that requires the training.

Q: Is there a difference if the training is required by the employer?

A: Yes. If the employer mandates training to renew the employee's certification in a specific area, then the employee's time spent attending the training is compensable. For example, if the library requires all employees to have an active first aid certificate upon employment by the library and the certificate must be renewed every three years, the employee's time spent in training or classes to receive a renewal of the certificate is compensable. However, if the employee voluntarily decides to take a class to acquire a first aid certificate and the library does not require first aid certification, the employee's time spent attending the first aid class is not compensable.

Our next article will address other legal issuesof importance to libraries.

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