Employers Cannot Deny Your Meal And Rest Breaks

To some employers, giving employees breaks is money down the drain. They view wage and hour laws as guidelines that can be ignored. In reality, employers who don’t provide breaks can be forced to pay back wages plus penalties for each instance of this illegal practice.

• Has your supervisor ordered you to work through your lunch or rest breaks?
• Have you been forced to clock out for paid break time?
• Has your pay been docked for taking breaks?
• Were you forced to stay on the job while others got their break?

I am Fresno employment law attorney Amanda Whitten, and at my firm Whitten Law, A Professional Law Corporation, I have recovered compensation for a variety of wage and hour violations, including denied meal breaks and rest breaks. I have successfully sued some of the largest corporations in pursuit of justice for working-class people.

I handle class actions and individual cases in the Central Valley, the Bay Area and Northern California. Contact me today for a confidential consultation.

Required Breaks In California

By law, every worker is entitled to a 30-minute meal break during a shift of five hours or more. You cannot be “on call” during your break, forced to answer the phones or required to remain on the premises. By law, you are also entitled to a break of at least 10 minutes for every four hours of work. So, during a typical eight-hour workday, you should always get a lunch break and two rest breaks.

To enforce these basic rights, employers can be held accountable for one hour of extra pay for every meal break or rest break that was denied within the last three years. For many workers, this adds up to hundreds or even thousands of dollars in retroactive compensation. I have a solid record of making employers pay these claims without the hassle and delay of bringing an administrative claim through the state.

Don’t Be Afraid To Assert Your Rights

Many workers are fearful of losing their jobs or facing backlash for filing meal/rest break claims. You are protected under state and federal laws from retaliation or termination. If an employer were bold enough to punish you, I will be there to make them pay even greater damages.

Offices: Fresno · Beverly Hills · Sacramento · Oakland · San Francisco
Contact me today for a free evaluation of your claims. I will pursue any back pay you are owed and force your employer to comply with wage and hour laws.