MIAMI A federal appeals court has ruled that motorcoach drivers used for airport-to-seaport shuttles are exempt from the Fair Labor Standards Act requirements for overtime pay.

The decision grew out of a lawsuit filed by drivers employed by American Coach Lines of Miami.

The drivers contended that because they were only shuttling cruise line passengers from an airport to a seaport and not leaving the state of Florida, they should not be bound by the Motor Carrier Exemption to the Fair Labor Standards Act rules for overtime pay.

Essentially, the case boiled down to whether shuttling the cruise line customers constituted interstate travel. If it did, then American Coach Lines couldnt be required to pay overtime under the Motor Carrier Exemption.

The 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that American Coach Lines cruise ship shuttles "share a practical continuity of movement with the interstate or international travel of the cruise lines and their passengers."

"For cruise ship passengers arriving at the airport or seaport, (American Coach Liness) shuttle rides would be part of the continuous stream of interstate travel that is their cruise vacation. The Royal Caribbean patrons in particular would have no reason to have any alternate view since the fee for the shuttle ride would either be bundled as part of their cruise vacation package or would be included on the bill for their Royal Caribbean shipboard account."

The Court shot down each of plaintiffs arguments that they were not subject to the Motor Carrier Exemption. The court said the application of the Motor Carrier Exemption did not require travel in interstate trips, the incidental-to-air exemption was inapplicable, and defendants were not required to have a "through-ticketing" arrangement with the cruise line to argue that the passengers were all moving in the continuity of interstate commerce.

Therefore, the court found that under these circumstances the drivers were not entitled to the benefits of the Fair Labor Standards Act because they were exempt under the Motor Carrier Act exemption to the FLSA.

Between April 2006 and December 2007, American Coach Lines transported more than 500,000 passengers for Royal Caribbean Lines, resulting in more than $4.4 million in revenue.