---
kind: "section"
citation: "5 C.F.R. § 551.541"
title: "5"
number: "551.541"
heading: "Employees engaged in fire protection activities or law enforcement activities."
url: "https://uscodex.org/cfr/5/551.541"
---

# §551.541. Employees engaged in fire protection activities or law enforcement activities.

- (a) An employee engaged in fire protection activities or law enforcement activities (as described in §§ [551.215](/cfr/5/551.215.md) and [551.216](/cfr/5/551.216.md), respectively) who receives compensation for those activities under 5 U.S.C. [5545(c)(1)](/usc/5/5545.md?p=c-1) or [(2)](/usc/5/5545.md?p=c-2) or [5545b](/usc/5/5545b.md), or does not meet the definition of “employee” in [5 U.S.C. 5541(2)](/usc/5/5541.md?p=2) for the purposes of 5 U.S.C. [5542](/usc/5/5542.md), [5543](/usc/5/5543.md), and [5544](/usc/5/5544.md), is subject to section 7(k) of the Act and this section. (See § [551.501(a)(1)](/cfr/5/551.501.md?p=a-1) and [(5)](/cfr/5/551.501.md?p=a-5)). Such an employee shall be paid at a rate equal to one and one-half times the employee's hourly regular rate of pay for those hours in a tour of duty which exceed the overtime standard for a work period specified in [section 7(k)](/cfr/5/7.md?p=k) of the Act.
- (b) The tour of duty of an employee covered by [paragraph (a)](#a) of this section shall include all time the employee is on duty. Meal periods and sleep periods are included in the tour of duty except as otherwise provided in §§ [551.411(c)](/cfr/5/551.411.md?p=c) and [551.432(b)](/cfr/5/551.432.md?p=b).
- (c) Each agency shall establish the “work period” to be used for application of [section 7(k)](/cfr/5/7.md?p=k) of the Act. The work period shall be at least seven days and not more than 28 days.
- (d) A firefighter subject to section 7(k) of the Act who is compensated under [part 550](/cfr/5/part550.md), [subpart M](/cfr/5/subpartM.md), of this chapter is deemed to be appropriately compensated under section 7(k) of the Act and this part if the requirements of [§ 550.1304(a)](/cfr/5/550.1304.md?p=a) of this chapter are satisfied. (See [5 U.S.C. 5545b(d)(2)](/usc/5/5545b.md?p=d-2).)

## Notes

### Amendments

[45 FR 85665, Dec. 30, 1980, as amended at 57 FR 59280, Dec. 15, 1992; 63 FR 64595, Nov. 23, 1998; 64 FR 69181, Dec. 10, 1999; 72 FR 52773, Sept. 17, 2007]

### Source

Source: 45 FR 85665, Dec. 30, 1980, unless otherwise noted.

### Authority

Authority: 5 U.S.C. 5542(c); Sec. 4(f) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, as amended by Pub. L. 93-259, 88 Stat. 55 (29 U.S.C. 204f). Link to an amendment published at 91 FR 48238, July 31, 2026.

### Amendments

[45 FR 85665, Dec. 30, 1980, as amended at 57 FR 59280, Dec. 15, 1992; 63 FR 64595, Nov. 23, 1998; 64 FR 69181, Dec. 10, 1999; 72 FR 52773, Sept. 17, 2007]