All that technology at employees’ fingertips doesn’t necessarily doom you to pay employees for “after hours” work. At least that’s what this court said.

Between Blackberrys, iPhones and other ways to stay electronically connected, it seems like some folks are never “off the clock.” And while that’s causing big overtime bills for some companies, a recent development offers some encouragement for employers.

One employee claimed that he should be compensated for the time he spent each evening uploading data to his company’s systems. While technically this was only a five minute task, the employee argued it could take 15 minutes or more, since the transfer didn’t always go through the first time.

Initially, a judge ruled that time could be compensable. Another blow to the company piggy bank!

But employers weren’t down for long — an appeals court reversed that call six months later.

Why? That time shouldn’t be compensable because while the transmissions were a “primary activity,” the employee had enough time in between to engage in personal activities.

That’s a good litmus test for similar situations you run up against.

Cite: Rutti v. Lojack Corp., Inc., U.S. Cir. Crt. 9, No. CV-06-00350-DOC, 3/2/10.