Earlier today, the California Supreme Court finally issued its long-awaited decision in the case of Brinker v. Superior Court, a case involving class action issues, as well as meal and rest break requirements and procedures. While many have claimed this is a major victory for employers, that is not necessarily the situation. The complex ruling offers guidance for both employers and employees.
Meal Periods
The Supreme Court held that employers are not strictly liable if an employee works during a meal period and that the employer does not have to police employees on their breaks to make sure they are not doing any work. The employer, however, must relieve its employees of all duty, relinquish control over their activities, permit them a reasonable opportunity to take an uninterrupted 30-minutes break, and cannot impede or discourage them from doing so. The Court noted that “what will suffice may vary from industry to industry, and we cannot in the context of this class certification proceeding delineate the full range of approaches that in each instance might be sufficient to satisfy the law.” Further, the Court stated that if the employee is given the break and choses on his/her own to work and the employer knows about it, the employer must still pay the employee at the regular rate of pay. The ruling simply holds that the employee would not be entitled to premium pay if the employee voluntary chooses to work.
As for the timing of the breaks, the first break must be given no later than the end of the 5th hour of work, and a second break must be provided before the end of 10 hours of work.
Rest breaks
An employee who works less than 3.5 hours a day is not entitled to a break. If an employee works 3-6 hours per day, they are entitled to a 10-minute rest break. If the employee works a shift 6-10 hours long, the employee is entitled to two 10-minute rest breaks. If the person works 10-14 hours, he is entitled to a third 10-minute rest period.
For more information, or if you need legal assistance, please contact the Wagner Legal Group, P.C. at (310) 857-5293 or fill out our contact form on the website.
