New Employment Laws For 2013 – Are You Ready?
California Supreme Court Clarifies Employers’ Meal And Rest Break Obligations In Long Awaited Brinker Decision
After three years, the California Supreme Court finally issued its much-anticipated decision on how employers must manage meal periods and rest breaks. The April 12, 2012 unanimous decision in Brinker Restaurant Corporation v. Superior Court clarifies California employers’ obligations to “provide” meal periods and “authorize or permit” rest periods. The decision highlights that all California employers need to have lawful meal and rest break policies to minimize the risk of expensive class litigation. Brinker is generally favorable for employers. The major take-aways are summarized below.
Meal Periods: No Duty to Ensure Employees Do No Work First, the California Supreme Court held that an employer’s duty to “provide” meal periods is a duty to relieve employees of all duty, empowering employees to decide how to use the meal period. More>>Posting Notices of Employee Rights
New Labor Commissioner Form to Comply with Labor Code Section 2810.5
U.S. Supreme Court Rejects California Law, Holds Class Action Waivers in Arbitration Agreements to be Enforceable
U.S. Supreme Court Gives Employers A Big Boost In Fighting Class Actions
Court Finds Neutral Rounding Is Lawful
California employers that utilize neutral rounding practices to calculate time for non-exempt employees have received some very welcome news.
In Silva v. See’s Candy Shops, Inc., the Court of Appeal overturned a trial court decision, which previously found that rounding violates California law. The appellate court held that employers may round employee time to the nearest tenth of an hour, provided that such rounding is fair and neutral on its face, and it will not result, over a period of time, in a failure to properly compensate employees for all hours worked.
A contrary decision could have wreaked havoc to longstanding employer practices. More>>