Courts to rule whether safety gear is clothing
Union workers are urging the Supreme Court to reconsider its classification of safety gear as clothing. According to previous ruling, workers need not be paid for their time and attendance while donning the equipment.
Section 3(o) of the Fair Labor Standards Act states that time used for "changing clothes or washing at the beginning or end of each workday" does not count as compensable work. However, the definition of "clothing" has previously not been clear enough to communicate whether safety equipment should be included.
The American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO) argues that the Supreme Court adopted too broad of a view when determining its ruling on the gear, according to Law360. The lawsuit was a collective action brought by U.S. Steel Corp. laborers in Michigan and Indiana who have to wear equipment such as protective boots, earplugs and a snood when working.
The employees believe they should be paid for the time they spend donning this safety gear because such items are not really clothing.
"I think that [the judges] recognize that in order for their statement to have meaning, it's got to be a workable definition [of clothing] that we can apply going forward," Aaron Maduff, attorney for the petitioners, told Law360.
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