De Minimis Time

The courts and the DOL have recognized that insubstantial or insignificant periods of time outside scheduled working hours may be disregarded in recording working time. This rule applies, however, only where a few minutes of work are involved and where the failure to count such time is due to rounding off practices or considerations justified by operational realities. Such time is considered de minimis, i.e., minor or trivial. Counties rely on this exclusion at their peril.^[1]