In Gerard v. Orange Coast Memorial Medical Center, the Court stated thata wage order of the Industrial Welfare Commission (“IWC”) permitting health care employees to waive their second meal period break if they work shifts longer than 12 hours did not violate the Labor Code. The Court noted that the Labor Code generally provides that employees who work more than five hours must be provided with a 30-minute meal period and that employees who work more than 10 hours must be provided with an additional 30-minute meal period. (Lab. Code, § 512(a)). An employee who works no more than six hours may waive the meal period, and an employee who works no more than 12 hours may waive the second meal period. A wage order of the IWC permits health care employees to waive the second meal period even if they have worked more than 12 hours. The hospital allowed employees working shifts longer than 12 hours to waive the second meal period, and the employees waived their second meal periods. Plaintiffs claimed that the IWC order permitting them to waive second meal periods for shifts greater than 12 hours violated the Labor Code and argued that the hospital should pay back wages and penalties for unlawfully permitting waiver of the second meal period. Considering the relevant statutory and regulatory provisions in light of their history, the California Supreme Court agreed with the Court of Appeal that the IWC order did not violate the Labor Code.

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