Meal & Rest Period Violations
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Hold California employers accountable for illegal actions and denied pay
Pursue Compensation for Skipped Meal & Rest Period Violations
California employers must provide non-exempt workers an opportunity to take a thirty-minute meal break when the employee will work more than five hours, during which time the worker should be relieved of all work duties.
If you or a loved one do not receive meal breaks or rest periods at work, you are entitled to additional pay — but employers rarely, if ever, provide employees with such pay by choice.
In the event of a missed meal or rest break, many employees are forced to recover compensation and damages through a rest and meal period violation lawsuit.
Types of Meal & Rest Period Violations
Examples of meal and rest period violations that may violate California law
- Cutting required break times short
- Pressuring workers to skip or work through breaks
- Overloading to-do lists so breaks are impossible
- Interrupting breaks with work-related tasks
How To Get Started
1.
Contact our team to schedule a free consultation
2.
Discuss the merits and our strategic approach to your case
3.
Partner with us to initiate your claim or litigation
Are there exceptions to California’s rest and meal period requirements?
There are some exclusions to the meal period requirement. For example, “exempt” staff members do not have to be given an opportunity for an uninterrupted 30-minute meal break.
Employees who are part of a union, or otherwise working under a collective bargaining agreement, are not always entitled to thirty-minute meal breaks. Another exemption exists for employees who will work less than six hours in a given shift. In the case when the working day is under six hours, the worker may agree to waive the meal break.
The issue of whether or not an employee is in fact exempt is quite complicated. It’s generally advisable to consult with an attorney to see if this exemption should actually apply in your case.
Do “on duty” meal periods violate my rights?
In some instances, “on duty” meal periods are allowed if the type of work performed by the employee prevents the employee from being completely relieved of job duties. Some examples of such job duties include security guards, who are charged with guarding remote locations where it is impractical for the guard to leave the post unmanned for thirty minutes to take a break.
This exemption can be quite complicated, so it is best to consult with the employment attorneys at Baker Law Group, LLP, to see if this exemption applies to your situation.
Cases Taken On Contingency
We do not charge for an initial consultation, and Baker Law Group, LLP, takes most wrongful termination cases on contingency, meaning you don’t pay until you win. When you contact Baker Law Group, LLP, we can tell you if a contingency fee structure is right for your case.