Executive Summary: On November 5, 2019, a federal district court in Ohio issued a decision clarifying the law governing whether owners of 73 Papa John’s franchised locations violated the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) by failing to adequately reimburse their delivery drivers for expenses incurred in using their own vehicles to complete deliveries. In deferring to the Department of Labor (DOL) Field Operations Handbook, the court held that where employees are paid at or close to minimum wage and they use their own vehicles to make deliveries, the proper measure of minimum wage compliance for pizza delivery drivers is to either (1) track and pay delivery drivers’ actual expenses incurred or (2) pay the mileage reimbursement rate set by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). See Hatmaker v. PJ Ohio, LLC, 2019 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 191790 (S.D. Ohio Nov. 5, 2019).
Home > Federal Law Articles > FLSA > General (FLSA) > “Better Ingredients, Better Pay?” – Federal Court Provides Guidance on FLSA Compliance and Reimbursement of Expenses for Pizza Delivery Drivers