Meal Breaks – We Mean Business
California employers are still feeling the repercussions of noncompliance
with meal breaks. In April 2019, a California jury (Hamilton vs. Wal-Mart Stores Inc.) awarded $6 million in meal break premiums to members (employees) of a class action lawsuit. As a California employer, you may be at risk for paying costly premiums if meal breaks are not appropriately provided to non-exempt employees.
Employers are required to provide non-exempt employees a
30-minute, unpaid meal period before the end of their 5th hour
worked. There are six more meal break requirements that employers must meet, can you identify what they are? (No Googling!)
Employers may find relief and fulfill these requirements a number of ways, including: Employees who work no more than a six-hour day can waive their meal break for that specific day with a signed meal break waiver. There are several other ways to fulfill these requirements and our team of HR experts can help.
At OmegaComp HR, we encourage California employers to have their pay practices reviewed. With over 18 years of working to improve business’ bottom lines, our experts are here for the long-haul, by your side, at every turn.