Most California employers know by now that a California appeals court recently issued an important decision in Brinker Restaurant Corp. v. Superior Court, interpreting the state’s meal and rest period requirements and giving employers and employees welcome flexibility in scheduling breaks. (See our complete coverage here.)
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But before you change your break policies and practices to take advantage of Brinker, note that a petition for review of the case has been filed with the California Supreme Court. If the court grants review (it has until late October to do so), the appeals court decision will be wiped off the books, and employers will have to wait for the high court to weigh in on meal and rest breaks. We’ll keep you posted.
In the meantime, we continue to recommend—as frustrating as it may sound—to stick with a strict meal and rest period policy that requires employees to take meal and rest breaks and to take breaks by specified times.
Access our sample Meal and Rest Periods Policy.