Ever wish you had a dollar for every minute you spent going through the airport security screenings? If a ruling by the Ninth Circuit U.S. Court is upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court, you may get your wish — if going through security is an unavoidable part of your job and it benefits your employer.

As reported on the Mondaq.com news portal, the matter arose from claims made by employees of Integrity Staffing Solutions. They argued that they should be compensated for the time they spent going through on-site security screenings after they had completed their shifts. They said the screenings, designed to thwart employee theft, were required by the company and benefited the company by reducing employee theft. Therefore, they argued, they should be paid for the time.

Their claims were made under auspices of the Fair Labor Standards Act. At the district level, the court supported Integrity's request for a dismissal on grounds that the screenings were “postliminary” to the employees' work and thus not compensable under existing law. Prior ruling had supported not compensating workers for “preliminary” and “postliminary” activities, according to the Mondaq.com writers.