I'm not sure if I'm allowed to ask this here. I work for a consulting firm as an hourly, non-exempt, part-time W2 employee (in California, if that's relevant). I perform field work that requires travel, sometimes up to 12 hours from my home. There is an office roughly 1.5 hours from house, though I have never been there. (I perform office work at home.) This company has a policy that limits paid drive time to four hours, each way, as well as limits paid mileage to 200 miles. Is this legal? I was told (by HR) that they're not legally required to pay for any drive time.
I've tried searching the web for clear answers, it seems to come down to what's a “normal” commute, so I'm not sure how to approach this.