Legal Question in Employment Law in California
I work for a southern California racetrack.
The geographical layout would make it difficult if not impossible to leave the premises for a lunch break.
The employee handbook states that we must ask our supervisor for permission to leave the premises .
State law says that we must be able to leave the premises and be totally relieved of ALL duties.
They paid our lunch breaks until last year and then stopped payment
We carry radios supplied by the racetrack to monitor calls and are instructed to be " the eyes and ears of the track"
My question is can the racetrack cease payment of our lunch break even though we have to be aware of security issues and hazards during our lunch breaks..
.
2 Answers from Attorneys
No. If you have any job responsibility during your lunch break you must be paid for that time. As you stated, the rule is that you are entitled to a lunch break and you must be completely free of all duties during that time.
You should consult an employment attorney about this; if there are other employees in your situation, there may be grounds for a class-action type suit, My firm handles these; you may contact me for a no obligation consult,
This sounds like a potential class action matter if numerous employees are impacted by the employer's failure to provide a lunch break without any work responsibilities required. I hope this helps. Feel free to contact me. Bob (818) 222-2433
Related Questions & Answers
Looking for something else?
10,200 active attorneys ready to answer your legal questions today.
Featured Attorneys
Earn additional revenue and grow your business.
