Do I receive my meal breaks properly?
Under California meal break law, each employee is entitled to a thirty-minute duty-freemeal break at the end of the fifth hour, if they work over six hours in one day. The meal break must be duty-free, meaning that the employee should not be bothered during his/her meal break. The employee remains free to leave the job site or can do whatever pleases them.
If the employee only works less than 6 hours, then the employee can legally waive his/her meal break. The waiver of the meal break is document that the employee must sign in writing, giving up their right to the meal break.
Failure to receive a meal break prior to the end of the employee’s fifth hour is a violation of California Labor Code, and the employee is entitled to a premium payment. The premium payment should be equal to one hour of pay in addition to the entire amount paid for the day. The premium payment must appear on the paystub as well.
Employers are required to record all meal break clock-in and clock-outs, and maintain the records of the clock-ins and clock-outs. Under a new California Supreme Court case, if an employer does not maintain an accurate record, then there is a rebuttable presumption that the employer is in violation of California meal break laws. Often employees are required to clock out and remain at work during their lunch break.
This is a violation of California law. Employers are required to pay a premium for each meal break violation. Our team of employment attorneys in Los Angeles have experience prosecuting cases of meal break violations against California employers. These violations include off-the-clock work during meal breaks, short meal breaks, interrupted meal breaks or untimely meal breaks.
What is a meal premium?
Under California law, a meal premium is the penalty that the employer must pay for each violation of the meal break. So, if an employee misses their meal break, or the employee takes their meal break later, or if the meal period is interrupted, then the employer must pay an additional hour of premium for each violation. The amount of the premium corresponds to the hourly rate of the employee.
Am I entitled to a second meal break?
The employer is also required to allow employees to have a 30-minute duty free mealbreak by the end of the tenth hour, if the employee works more than 10 hours in one shift. In some industries, the second meal break may be waived if the employee and the employer reach an agreement in writing and the employee consents to the waiver prior to the beginning of their job.
Example: Mario works as construction employee, and he clocks in at 8:00 am. Mario isentitled to receive his first meal break before 1:00 pm. Mario works until 6 p.m. Therefore, Mario must receive his second meal break before 6:00 pm.
If the employer was required to provide a second meal break and the employer fails to do so, then the employer is required to pay a premium for each violation which amounts to one hour of the employee’s hourly rate.
Can my employer require me to remain on-site during my meal breaks?
No, the employee must be able to leave the worksite and take their meal break where they please. Requiring an employee to remain on site during the meal break, or requiring them to be available during their lunch breaks, is in violation of the Labor Code.
Can my employer round my time?
Most employers use an automated time recording system these days to calculate the accurate time worked by an employee. Another issue that affects accurate time calculation is the practice of rounding the time worked by employees. Rounding policies can be applied to meal periods so long as they are fair and neutral. If an Employee’s time was rounded both upwards and downwards during their meal break, and results in employees being paid for more time, then the policy is fair and neutral and consistent with California law. If you believe that your employer used a rounding system that was not neutral or fair, then please contact our team of attorneys at Employment Rights Lawyers, APC today.
What is a Split Shift?
A "split shift" occurs only when an employee’s designated working hours are interrupted by one or more unpaid, nonworking periods established by the employer that are not bona fide rest or meal periods. The fact that a single continuous shift happens to begin during one "workday" and end in another does not result in a "split shift." If the employee works two shifts separated by more than a rest or meal period, they are entitled to receive one hour of pay at the minimum wage rate in addition to the minimum wage for that workday. If your Employer had a policy of split shift in place and you did not receive one hour of minimum wage rate in addition to your daily wages, then you might have a case against your employer for a violation of California law. Please contact our team of attorneys at
Employment Rights Law Group today for a free consultation.
So if your employer requires you to remain available during your lunch break, or you do not receive your meal break within the first five hours, or if your lunch is interrupted, then your employer owes you an hour of premium for each violation of your meal break. Our team of attorneys at Employment Rights Lawyers, APC have prosecuted numerous cases involving meal break violations and we have obtained favorable results for our clients.
Rest Break
Under California law, each employee is entitled to a ten-minute rest break for every shift of 3.5 hours. The rest break is a paid time where the employee is allowed to take their break, and this time must be uninterrupted. The employer cannot ask the employee to remain on site or within the employer’s building during the rest break. Any interruption of a rest break is illegal as well.
The employer remains liable for a premium penalty for each rest break violation. The premium penalty equals one hour of the employee’s pay.
If you work in an eight-hour shift, then you are entitled to two ten minutes rest break, for every four hours that you work. The employer cannot combine the two rest breaks.
Example: Alessandro is a legal assistant working for a law firm. The company’s policy says thatemployees are not allowed to leave the worksite during the rest break. Alessandro has been prevented from leaving the building during his breaks. Therefore, Alessandro has a claim for rest breaks violations against the company.
Example 2: Johanna is a nurse at a hospital in San Diego. Johanna’s employer requires her to take one 20 - minute rest break in the afternoon. Johanna’s employer does not allow her to take a 10-min rest break. Johanna has been prevented from taking any rest breaks throughout her employment. Therefore, Johanna has a claim against her employer since the employer is not allowed to require employees to combine their rest break.
All employers must provide on-site suitable resting facilities that are in an area separate from the bathrooms, which must be available to employees during work hours, as well as sufficient toilets. All employers must provide seats or seats in reasonable proximity to the work area that employees are permitted to use when it does not interfere with performance of their duties. If your employer failed to provide you with a rest area or adequate seating, please reach out to our office.
If your employer fails to provide you with a rest break or asks you to stay on premise during the break, please contact our team of employment law attorneys at Employment Rights Lawyers, APC. Our Los Angeles attorneys have prosecuted a multitude of rest break cases.
