(a) The standard that must be used to determine whether the
individual employee is exempt is that his primary duty must be the range
production of livestock and that this duty necessitates his constant
attendance on the range, on a standby basis, for such periods of time so
as to make the computation of hours worked extremely difficult. The fact
that an employee generally returns to his place of residence at the end
of each day would not affect the application of the exemption.
(b) Thus, exempt work must be performed away from the
``headquarters.'' The headquarters is not, however, to be confused with
the ``headquarters ranch.'' The term headquarters has reference to the
place for the transaction of the business of the ranch (administrative
center), as distinguished from buildings or lots used for convenience
elsewhere. It is a particular location for the discharge of the
management duties. Accordingly, the term ``headquarters'' would not
embrace large acreage, but only the ranchhouse, barns, sheds, pen,
bunkhouse, cookhouse, and other buildings in the vicinity. The balance
of the ``headquarters ranch'' would be the ``range.''
(c) Furthermore, the legislative history indicates that this
exemption was not intended to apply to feed lots or to any area where
the stock involved would be near headquarters. Its sponsors stated that
the exemption would apply only to those employees principally engaged in
activities which require constant attendance on a standby basis, away
from headquarters, such as herding, where the computation of hours
worked would be extremely difficult. Such constant surveillance of
livestock that graze and reproduce on range lands is necessary to see
that the animals receive adequate care, water, salt, minerals, feed
supplements, and protection from insects, parasites, disease, predators,
adverse weather, etc.
(d) The man-days of labor of employees principally engaged in the
range production of livestock, even though the employees are exempt from
the wage and hour requirements of the Act, are included in the
employer's man-day count for purposes of application of section
13(a)(6)(A). Thus, if a cattle rancher in a particular calendar quarter
uses 200 man-days of such range production labor and 400 man-days of
agricultural labor performed by individuals not so engaged, he is
required to pay the minimum wage to the latter employees in the
following year.
