Document ID: ./input/supremecourt_opinions/opinions/boundvolumes/529bv.pdf
Page Number: 653

529US2

Unit: $U53

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CHRISTENSEN v. HARRIS COUNTY

Opinion of the Court

Michael P. Fleming argued the cause for respondents.
With him on the brief were Michael A. Stafford, Bruce S.
Powers, and William John Bux.*

Justice Thomas delivered the opinion of the Court.
Under the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (FLSA), 52
Stat. 1060, as amended, 29 U. S. C. § 201 et seq. (1994 ed. and
Supp. III), States and their political subdivisions may com-
pensate their employees for overtime by granting them com-
pensatory time or “comp time,” which entitles them to take
time off work with full pay. § 207(o).
If the employees do
not use their accumulated compensatory time, the employer
is obligated to pay cash compensation under certain circum-
stances.
§§ 207(o)(3)–(4). Fearing the ﬁscal consequences
of having to pay for accrued compensatory time, Harris
County adopted a policy requiring its employees to schedule
time off in order to reduce the amount of accrued compensa-
tory time. Employees of the Harris County Sheriff ’s De-
partment sued, claiming that the FLSA prohibits such a pol-
icy. The Court of Appeals rejected their claim. Finding
that nothing in the FLSA or its implementing regulations
prohibits an employer from compelling the use of compensa-
tory time, we afﬁrm.

I
A

The FLSA generally provides that hourly employees who
work in excess of 40 hours per week must be compensated

*Briefs of amici curiae urging reversal were ﬁled for the American
Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations by Jona-
than P. Hiatt, Deborah Greenﬁeld, James B. Coppess, and Laurence Gold;
for the International Association of Fire Fighters by Thomas A. Woodley;
and for the National Association of Police Organizations by Stephen R.
McSpadden.

Jeffrey A. Hollingsworth ﬁled a brief for Spokane Valley Fire Protec-

tion District No. 1 as amicus curiae urging afﬁrmance.