Do You Work for Free in the Mining Industry? The Truth About Pre-Shift and Post-Shift Activities

Why your employer owes you for time spent getting ready to work.

If you’re a miner, the workday starts long before you pick up your tools. Pre-shift activities like putting on personal protective equipment (PPE) or traveling to a job site within the mine are often required but unpaid. The same goes for post-shift tasks, like removing PPE or waiting for transport to exit the site. Under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), this time counts as work, and your employer may owe you for it.

The law is clear: activities that are “integral and indispensable” to your primary job duties must be compensated. In mining, PPE isn’t optional—it’s essential for safety. If you spend 15 to 20 minutes suiting up or traveling underground before your official start time, that’s time you’re working. Over weeks, months, or years, these unpaid minutes add up to hours of lost wages and potentially thousands of dollars left on the table.

To hold your employer accountable, start by tracking the time you spend on pre-shift and post-shift activities. Keep records of how long it takes to don and doff PPE, travel to and from your worksite, or complete other required tasks outside your paid hours. Compare your records to your paycheck—if there’s a discrepancy, you may have a claim for unpaid wages. Under the FLSA, you can recover up to three years of back pay, and in many cases, double damages for your employer’s violations.

Mining is tough work, and your time is valuable. If your employer requires you to perform tasks that are necessary to your job, they’re legally obligated to pay you for it. Don’t let unpaid pre-shift and post-shift activities go unnoticed—you’ve earned that time and the wages that come with it.

Contact Kennedy Law Firm today for a free case review.