On-Call at Home – Pay Policy

[Aleesha Van Damme]

#95519

Forum: Private

Hi there,

This feels rather complex. I am creating an on-call pay policy for our dispatchers who are on-call from their homes. My question is regarding the 2-hour minimum pay requirement. I want to clarify if it is legal for my policy to outline that during on-call shift window, for example 10 pm -7 am, only the first call triggers the 2-hour minimum pay requirement and additional work outside of the two hour window will be paid based on actual time worked and at OT rates if the person worked a regular 8-hour shift that day. Even if other calls come in several hours apart and extend beyond the original 2-hour minimum pay window, I want them to be considered part of the same report and not trigger subsequent 2-hour minimum pay requirements.

In addition, if the dispatcher is again at home and the on-call window is from 8 am – 8 am, would that person be considered “working” the full 24 hours? In this example I would still like to stipulate in the policy the same as above in that only a single call can trigger the two-hour minimum pay window?

Finally, does being on-call at home after working a regular 8 hour shift count toward working hours and trigger Section 36 (2) – “hours free from work” of the ESA if we had them work in the office the following day?

Thank you so much for looking into this for me. I am finding it very tricky to navigate and want to ensure we are legally compliant.

Take care,
Aleesha Van Damme

[Haley O’Halloran]

#95520

You’re absolutely right to seek clarity here—on-call pay policies can be challenging to align with employment standards, particularly in British Columbia, where laws under the Employment Standards Act (ESA) have specific provisions for hours of work, rest periods, and compensation. Here’s a breakdown of your questions and relevant legal considerations:

1. Two-Hour Minimum Pay Requirement for On-Call Shifts
Your Proposal:
You want to apply the two-hour minimum pay only to the first call received during an on-call window (e.g., 10 PM–7 AM). Subsequent calls within or outside the initial two-hour block would be paid only for the actual time worked, potentially at overtime (OT) rates if applicable.

Legal Consideration:
Under BC’s ESA, when an employee reports for work, even if sent home immediately, they are entitled to a minimum of 2 hours’ pay (or 4 hours if scheduled for more than 8 hours), unless the work is suspended due to reasons beyond the employer’s control (like a power outage).

The key term is “reporting to work”, which has generally been interpreted to include remote work or phone-in/on-call duties, depending on how disruptive they are.

If a dispatcher must take a call and perform job duties (e.g., coordinating responses), they are likely “reporting to work.”

Therefore, each separate call that requires actual work could potentially be interpreted as a separate “report,” especially if spaced apart by several hours.

Your Policy Proposal Legality:
Risky. Stipulating that only the first call in a shift qualifies for the 2-hour minimum may conflict with ESA if later calls require actual work. You might reduce legal risk by:

Clarifying that “calls within a continuous block of work are treated as part of the same call-out period”.

Using reasonable spacing guidelines (e.g., all calls within 2 hours are one report).

2. 24-Hour On-Call Shift – Are They “Working” the Entire Time?
Your Question:
Is an at-home dispatcher on-call from 8 AM to 8 AM (24 hours) considered “working” the entire time?

Legal Consideration:
No, not automatically. Being “on-call” does not equal “hours worked” unless:

The employee is restricted in a way that prevents them from using the time freely (e.g., required to stay at home and respond within a few minutes).

ESA and jurisprudence focus on the degree of control and interruption.

If the dispatcher can sleep, run errands, and generally go about personal activities, then only the actual time spent working (taking calls) is compensable.

Your Policy:
Stating that only one call per 24-hour period triggers the two-hour minimum is highly problematic unless you can guarantee that all other time is truly unrestricted and that subsequent calls are de minimis or non-disruptive. Multiple substantive call-outs during a shift would likely need to be treated as separate events.

3. Section 36(2) – 8 Hours Free from Work Requirement
Your Question:
Does at-home on-call duty count as “working time” for purposes of the required 8 consecutive hours of rest before the next shift?

Legal Consideration:
Yes, if they perform work during the on-call period, that time counts toward total hours worked. Therefore:

If someone works 8 hours during the day, gets called during their on-call period (say, from 2 AM to 3 AM), and is then asked to return to work at 8 AM, they may not have had 8 consecutive hours off, violating Section 36(2).

Section 36(2) requires at least 8 consecutive hours free from work between shifts unless an emergency or exception applies.

Implication:
You must track when the employee was actually working and ensure that 8 hours of uninterrupted off-duty time is provided before their next scheduled shift, or risk a non-compliance issue.

Recommendations
Structure Your Policy Around Actual Work Performed:

Document how calls are logged and when they start/end.

Define a “report for work” window clearly and reasonably (e.g., grouping close-together calls).

Pay Two-Hour Minimum for Each Distinct Work Period:

If work is performed hours apart, it’s safest to assume they’re separate and should be paid accordingly.

Respect ESA Section 36:

Ensure employees get 8 consecutive hours of rest after any period of work, including on-call duties, before their next scheduled shift.

Seek Legal Review:

Before implementing the policy, have it reviewed by a BC employment lawyer or HR consultant experienced in ESA compliance.

This last part is the most important – I cannot provide legal advice so seeking out legal counsel and an HR director to help you navigate this complex situation is key. Best of luck and I hope this information leads you down the right path!

-HRInsider Staff

[Aleesha Van Damme]

#95521

Thank you for the detailed response. This is incredibly helpful.
Do you see anything wrong with specifying a “work window” larger than 2 hours? For example, could we set up a 3—or 4-hour window, and calls outside of that would trigger a new minimum pay period?

[Haley O’Halloran]

#95525

Of course! This is, as mentioned, a detailed topic that requires some legal attention, so while I recommend consulting specific questions like these with a lawyer, I can still provide some guidance on your query:

You can specify a “work window” longer than 2 hours (e.g., 3 or 4 hours), but doing so comes with legal and practical risks under the BC Employment Standards Act (ESA) that should be carefully evaluated.

1. Definition of “Reporting for Work”
Under the ESA:

“Reporting to work” includes remote duties if they require an employee to actively perform job functions (e.g., a dispatcher coordinating emergency responses).

Each instance of “reporting for work” may trigger a new 2-hour minimum pay requirement unless part of a continuous block of work.

2. Risk in Extending the Window
The ESA doesn’t define an exact duration for what constitutes a single report or a “block of work.” Therefore:

A 2-hour grouping aligns with the ESA’s minimum standard and is generally seen as a defensible interpretation.

Expanding to 3 or 4 hours increases legal risk, particularly if the calls are sporadic, require significant employee attention, or occur after a long uninterrupted rest.

3. Jurisprudence and ESA Guidance
Courts and arbitrators typically look at:

Whether the calls are part of an uninterrupted chain of related tasks.

The degree to which the employee’s time is restricted or disrupted.

Whether the employee can reasonably return to personal activities between calls.

If, for example, an employee is called at 10:00 PM and again at 1:30 AM:

A 4-hour window might seem to group both under one report, but the employee may have had time to go back to sleep or resume personal activity in between.

Treating it as one call-out could be interpreted as non-compliant.

Recommendation
If you wish to define a “work window”:

Use 2 hours as the default grouping window, in line with ESA minimums.

You may extend this slightly (e.g., up to 3 hours) if:

You clearly define it in policy.

You document call logs precisely.

The calls are operationally related or tightly spaced.

Avoid 4-hour windows unless there’s a compelling operational justification and legal backing.

You might use wording such as:

“Calls received within 2 hours of the initial on-call engagement will be considered part of the same call-out period for purposes of minimum pay. Calls received after this window will be treated as separate call-outs and subject to a new two-hour minimum pay, if job duties are performed.”

Risk Mitigation
Keep detailed logs of all on-call activity, including timestamps of calls and actions taken.

Allow exceptions or overrides if a later call is significantly disruptive or unrelated to the first.

Have the policy reviewed by legal counsel with experience in BC employment standards.

While the ESA is silent on the precise duration that defines “a report for work,” any policy that reduces entitlements below the ESA’s intention—especially where duties are performed—should be conservative and well-documented to withstand scrutiny.

-HRInsider Staff

[Aleesha Van Damme]

#95526

Hi there,

Again, thank you for providing such detailed information on on-call pay requirements. My final question is around the following ESA definition:

Under BC’s ESA, when an employee reports for work, even if sent home immediately, they are entitled to a minimum of 2 hours’ pay (or 4 hours if scheduled for more than 8 hours), unless the work is suspended due to reasons beyond the employer’s control (like a power outage).

Here is my example: I have a dispatcher who has worked an 8-hour shift and is then placed on-call from 4 pm-12 am (another 8-hour shift). Would I be required to pay that employee at the 4-hour minimum pay requirement when a call comes in because he/she has been scheduled to be on-call for another 8 hours. Or would I pay the 2-hour minimum for the first 4 hours (of the 8-hour block), and then pay the 4-hour minimum pay requirement for the subsequent 4 hours (of the 8-hour block)?

There is so much to consider here. I will certainly have to get my organization on board with having everything reviewed by an employment lawyer prior to finalizing, but this information helps tremendously with giving me a good basis to get started.

Thank you,
Aleesha Van Damme

[Haley O’Halloran]

#95528

Hi Aleesha!

You’re right to look closely at how BC’s Employment Standards Act (ESA) minimum daily pay rules apply in complex scheduling scenarios like on-call work following a full shift. Here’s a breakdown of how this may apply in your example:

Under Section 34 of the BC Employment Standards Regulation, the “minimum daily pay” or “reporting pay” rule states:

If an employee reports to work and works less than their scheduled shift, they must be paid for at least two hours, or four hours if scheduled for more than eight hours, unless:

The work is suspended due to circumstances beyond the employer’s control.

On-call work typically only counts toward this reporting pay minimum if the employee is called in and performs work (i.e., not simply being on standby).

Your Scenario: Dispatcher Working + On-Call
You described a dispatcher who:

-Works an 8-hour regular shift.

-Then goes on-call for another 8 hours (4:00 p.m. to 12:00 a.m.).

-Gets called in during the on-call window.

The ESA doesn’t explicitly distinguish how minimum pay applies to “called in” work after a shift ends, so interpretation often depends on case-by-case factors. But here are the main considerations:

Pay Obligation When Called In
Option 1: Pay 2 Hours Minimum Per Call-In
If the call-in is brief (e.g., 30 minutes), and the employee is not scheduled for a second 8-hour shift, but just “on-call”:

You likely owe 2 hours’ minimum pay per call-in (Section 34(1) of the Regulation).

Option 2: Pay 4 Hours If Treated as a Scheduled Shift
If the employee was pre-scheduled to be on-call for 8 hours, and you treat it as a defined second shift, then:

The call-in could be considered part of a scheduled 8-hour shift, so 4 hours minimum may apply if they work less than 4 hours.

However, this hinges on whether the on-call period is considered “scheduled work” under the ESA.

In practice:

The on-call period itself does not count as time worked unless the employee is called in.

Only the hours actually worked (due to a call-in) trigger the reporting pay rule.

Practical Approach
If the dispatcher receives one call during the on-call window, and works less than 2 hours: pay 2 hours minimum.

If they receive multiple call-ins, or work several short shifts during the on-call block:

ESA is silent on cumulative call-ins, but many employers pay 2 hours per call-in, unless calls are continuous (i.e., the work stretches longer).

Recommendations
Clarify internal policy on on-call scheduling—are these blocks considered scheduled work?

Ensure your practice is internally consistent and clearly documented in case of audit or complaint.

Since ESA enforcement can vary by case, you’re absolutely right: getting legal review on your policies is a smart step.

Best of luck with getting started, I’m here if you have any more questions!

-HRInsider Staff

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