§783.37. Enforcement policy for non-seaman's work. — Inbound Citations

The application of the exemptions provided by section 13(a)(14) and section 13(b)(6) of the Act is determined in accordance with their language and scope as explained in §§ 783.24, 783.25, and 783.27, with regard to the principles set forth in § 783.20 and the legislative history and judicial construction outlined in §§ 783.28 through 783.30. Whether a particular employee is exempt depends on what he does, as explained in §§ 783.31 through 783.37. Whether he is exempt from the overtime pay provisions only or from minimum wages as well depends on whether his employment is or is not on an American vessel, which is determined as indicated in §§ 783.38 through 783.42. In addition, sections 13(a)(14) and 13(b)(6), like other exemptions in the Act, apply on a workweek basis as mentioned in § 783.43 and explained in §§ 783.49 and 783.50.

The unit of time to be used in determining the application of the exemption provided by section 13(b)(6) or 13(a)(14) to an employee is the workweek. (See Overnight Transportation Co. v. Missel, 316 U.S. 572; Sternberg Dredging Co. v. Walling, 158 F. 2d 678.) This is the period used in determining whether a substantial amount of non-seaman's work has been performed so as to make the exemption inapplicable. See § 783.37. A workweek is a fixed and regularly recurring interval of 7 consecutive 24-hour periods. It may begin at any hour of any day set by the employer and need not coincide with the calendar week. Once the workweek has been set it commences each succeeding week on the same day and at the same hour. Changing of the workweek for the purpose of escaping the requirements of the Act is not permitted.