Employer Obligations to Provide Meal Periods
So, what does it mean to “provide” a meal period? An employer is not required to make sure no work is performed during a meal period, but the employer must go beyond simply making a meal period “available” to its employees. Generally, to ensure that their obligation to provide a meal period is satisfied, an employer has to actually relieve all employees of all duties, relinquish control over the employee’s activities, give employees a sensible opportunity to have a 30-minute break without interruption (during which they may leave and return at will), and be certain not to discourage or hinder employees from taking their meal period.
It is illegal for employers to subvert a formal policy of providing meal periods (i.e., in a handbook) by putting pressure on employees to complete their duties in a way that prevents them from taking meal periods (as through scheduling to make meal periods difficult). As stated by the California Supreme Court, “The wage orders and governing statute do not countenance an employer’s exerting coercion against the taking of, creating incentives to forego, or otherwise encouraging the skipping of legally protected breaks.” In English, this means that an employer cannot coerce an employee to work during a meal period or create incentives for an employee to work through a meal period.
Our Notable Class Action Cases
Our top priority is to devise customized legal strategies that are tailored to the unique legal needs of our clients, no matter how simple or complicated their situations, might be.
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Ayala v. Terminix International, Inc.
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Bankwitz v. Ecolab Inc. - Territory Manager Overtime Lawsuit
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Bautista v. Alliance Environmental Group
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Berry v. DCOR, LLC
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Bognuda v. Great White Dental
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Campos v. Ecolab Inc. – California Route Sales Manager (RSM) Lawsuit
What Makes Strauss & Strauss APC Different
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If we don't get a favorable ruling the first time around, we work hard to appeal cases to ensure we do everything we can for your case.
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We fight on behalf of employees only and are not afraid of going up against the largest corporations in the country, if not the world.
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Our seasoned team of attorneys come up with innovative solutions unheard of in the past in order to advance their cases in court.
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In the last decade, Strauss & Strauss APC has recovered over $100 million dollars for employees in California.