Daylight saving time (DST) was conceived by Benjamin Franklin in 1784 and established throughout the U.S. in 1966. Its purpose is to save electricity by extending daylight hours for eight months of the year. While daylight saving time may help save on electricity use and cost, it may cause a payroll headache for companies with shift workers.
1. When Is Daylight Saving Time in 2022?
2. Night Shift During Daylight Saving Time: Workers & Businesses Affected
3. Daylight Saving Time and Payroll
4. Do Night Shift Workers Get Paid for Daylight Saving Time?
5. Sunshine Protection Act: What Employers Need to Know
In 2022, daylight saving time starts on March 13 and ends on November 6 when the clocks move forward one hour or back (respectively) at 2 a.m. Daylight saving time is not observed in Arizona, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and American Samoa.
Many employees work schedules other than the standard 9-to-5, Monday through Friday workweek with many industries requiring employees to work night shifts. Emergency services, security, retail, food service, travel, hospitality and manufacturing are just some types of positions that require night and weekend schedules. The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reports that 16% of workers worked a non-daytime schedule in the most recent timeframe for which statistics are available from 2017 to 2018.
The Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) describes a few payroll problems employers deal with when it comes to daylight saving time if they have hourly employees working graveyard or overnight shifts. It may result in an extra hour of work if employees are at work at 2 a.m. when the autumn time change occurs and an hour is gained, and this may push the total week’s work hours to over 40 resulting in an overtime pay obligation. It may result in employees losing a payroll hour for actual time worked when the springtime change occurs and an hour is lost.
These hours gained and lost create a payroll processing problem for employers because the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) requires employers to credit employees for hours actually worked.
Introduced in 2021, and passed by the Senate on March 15, 2022, the Sunshine Protection Act would make Daylight Saving Time the permanent time and would end Standard Time. If passed by Congress and signed into law by the President, the new law would take effect on November 5, 2023.
The Sunshine Protection Act does more than simply give us more daylight in the afternoon and evening hours. It also impacts the workplace. Research shows by permanently adhering to Daylight Savings Time, workplaces would likely see fewer workplace injuries and car accidents. According to a 2020 study, in the week following the semi-annual "clock-switching" event, fatal car accidents rose by 6% and workplace injuries and medical errors also increased slightly.
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Some industries have been more vocal in their support for the Sunshine Protection Act. The construction industry is one such industry. Changing the clocks back in the fall requires contractors to light jobs differently, reset schedules, alert work teams and cause additional hazards, according to Hurd Construction Director Brandon Hurd, who was interviewed by the Orlando Sentinel.
Hurd went on to express the safety hazards inherent to the construction industry when changing the clocks. He said, " ... the body's natural circadian rhythm is immediately out of sync during those first several days after you're forced to speed up the clock. This change in sleep habit means your body may have to adjust to this change, and this adjustment period increases the opportunity for injuries and accidents in the field."
In addition to the construction industry, retailers and recreational sports suppliers have also expressed their support for the Act.
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At Axcet HR Solutions, our risk management and payroll teams work tirelessly to help ensure safety is a top priority and payroll flows accurately and efficiently, even through challenging times. Meet our award-winning team today >>
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