Forced Lunch?

[mrstimulation]

Your not listenning State laws says it is manatory that breaks and meals be taken!

Sorry for the confussion. No one else is foreced to take an unpaid hour break here. State law mandates 2 paid 10 minute rest periods and one 30 minute break in the middle of the day.

While other employees are free to take breaks for up to an hour (or not despite state law), no one is foreced to take an unpaid hour break.

Thus, even if I comply with state law, my employer may force my coworker I to take a longer unpaid break. I wasn't sure if an emplyer could do this since no one else is required to take such a break. I am assuming that emplyers must have policies that apply to everyone and should not be able to make exceptions for two people.

 

[panther10758]

Actually they can depending on many factors example Most companies have people scheduled for 8 1/2 huors with a 30 min meal break. Others might be scheduled 9 hours with an hour meal break. It depends on the job desription and the perks that go with the position. Long as an employer has an employee take at least his two 10 min breask and 30 min meal break the employer is within the law. How the employer decides who gets what when is at employers decretion

 

[pattytx]

Sorry for the confussion. No one else is foreced to take an unpaid hour break here. State law mandates 2 paid 10 minute rest periods and one 30 minute break in the middle of the day.

While other employees are free to take breaks for up to an hour (or not despite state law), no one is foreced to take an unpaid hour break.

Thus, even if I comply with state law, my employer may force my coworker I to take a longer unpaid break. I wasn't sure if an emplyer could do this since no one else is required to take such a break. I am assuming that emplyers must have policies that apply to everyone and should not be able to make exceptions for two people.

I don't know why this is so difficult to understand. The law requires a 30-minute meal break and 2 paid 10-minute rest breaks during an 8-hour work shift. If they are not taken, it is the employER who is in violation of the law, not the employEE. The employer SHOULD require the employees to take the breaks mandated by law. If the employer requires that YOU take a one-hour meal period, they are certainly within their legal rights to do so.

And, you assume incorrectly. Although policies should generally apply across the board, there is no law that says they MUST; exceptions can be made, as long as the exceptions are not based on a protected characteristic under Title VII or other reason as prohibited by law. If the employees who do NOT get the required breaks want to file complaints with the DLSE, they may do so.

 

[ecmst12]

I'll re-word: If the state of California finds out that your employer is not ENFORCING the mandatory lunch break laws, your employer will be fined. The mandatory lunch break time is 30 minutes, you do not need to take more then that to be in compliance with the law. An 8.5 hour day isn't all that different than an 8 hour day and it reduces the chances of getting food on your work files!

 

[eerelations]

And as far as you personally are concerned, it's perfectly legal for your employer-client to force you (and just you alone, no one else) to take an unpaid meal break of any length of time during your workday, as long as that meal break is no less than 30 minutes in duration.