Did you know the laws have changed on break time? It’s not easy to keep up on all of the latest wage and employment laws, but that’s what we are here for. This year new laws were passed to protect employees from being overworked, especially in physically strenuous fields.  The weather appears to have finally cooled off, but many still work in hot kitchens or factories where the outside cool down does little to help. New labor law SB435 provides protection for all employees when it comes to paid break time.

For most employees this is just a nice perk, but for many it is essential to their health and well being, even more so in the hot months. Charged with regulating the health and safety of the workplace, the CA office of Industrial Welfare also works to maintain fair wages for certain areas. Before SB 435 when employees took their break in the middle of their shift to cool off or rest they could be required to go to a desk and perform other “less strenuous” duties out of the heat.

Perhaps the largest change from SB 435 comes in the redefining of “break time.” The new law lays out this cool off period as totally off limits to the employer, while you can be required to stay onsite for the simple reason you are being paid to be there, you cannot be given other desk work or anything else to do while on your rest break.  Your employer may not combine this rest period with your lunch break either.

If however your shift is less than three hours you are not entitled to the paid break period. Once you have worked more than four hours you must receive your rest time, and if this was not given in a timely manner or was unpaid you may have the right to collect not only on the break time itself, but also for penalties and interest on the unpaid time.

One thing to consider is that because this is a paid break period the company still has the right to dictate certain activities, i.e. you may not leave the premises. This in turn means that if the facility has a no smoking policy, you can be denied “smoke breaks.” This is an important distinction to remember as the denial of such breaks is NOT a violation of your rights.

There are exceptions of course which is why it is so important to get a professional review of your situation. Some exceptions include; most on-call or 24 hour care workers such as assisted living and in home care providers. As well as athletes and performers who have very specific guidelines due to the extreme nature of the work they do.

United Employees Law Group has a diligent and knowledgeable team waiting to help you and your co-workers. Whether you have an individual case or a widespread problem in the company we want to hear you story. Call today and see just what we can do for you.

Photo Credit: Shutterstock/Zoran Orcik

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Oil spills in the Gulf have wreaked havoc for the residents of the area, the effected population consisting of many families of injured or killed workers. As condolences poor in from all over the Country the remaining employees are greatly concerned about the health safety of their workplace and have taken a position, wanting to play an effective role in controlling the hazardous conditions.

The state of California is well known for providing some of the most stringent regulations protecting workers health and security. OSHA, or the Occupational Safety and Health Administration was formed by the Federal Government in 1970 to insure safe work conditions, but long before federal law, California had already established the Cal/OSHA. This administration laid down strict rules and also heavy penalties if the laws were violated in any way.

Thomas Perez is the current U.S. Secretary of Labor, and remains determined to provide the laborers with their rights to safe and healthy environments and this is why when BP Global failed to provide such a workplace in the explosion of the  Texas City refinery, his predecessor fined the scandalous BP global heavily.

Cal/OSHA states very clearly that the employer must be aware of any sorts of hazardous conditions that the worker may face and not only inform the employees of those conditions, but also prepare for the worst. The most important thing is that if the employer knows about the hazardous conditions that may occur he should try his best to eliminate them. In case there are any sorts of injuries or casualties in the accidents at the workplace then they should be reported immediately.

The employee has been given rights to ensure their safety:
They have the right to complain about the unsafe environment and can put forth the request of an inspection.
They have the right to follow Cal/OSHA standards and refuse to perform any work that is in violation of that.
The employ cannot be punished for filing the complaint or using any right that is provided by Cal/OSHA.
Violations filed under Cal/OSHA are generally responded to in a quicker manner than reports to OSHA. The stiff penalties and even criminal charges may be pressed, depending upon the severity of the hazardous conditions. The penalty may reach from $7,000 to $25,000 and the additional penalties can be such that each day that the employer takes to correct the conditions he would be charged. Violation of the law with the will of doing so can be penalized between $5,000 and $70,000. If any death or serious injury takes place due to the violation knowingly then the sentence of 3 years and up to $1.5 million fine may be imposed on the employer.

These harsh penalties and hefty fines haven’t ensured the 100% safety in California due to the presence of lawyers in the big cities such as Los Angeles and San Francisco who have political support and are very resourceful. Some cases as we know also occur in the rural areas where migrant workers and undocumented immigrants reside who are overlooked by the system up till now. New protection laws now make it safer for such workers to speak up.
All the employees should take care of the health and safety requirements and if they observe any glitches they should report it to their employer. If the employer fails to take adequate steps to eradicate the issue then employees can report the violation/s to Cal/OSHA right away. If any injury or death takes place due to the lack of safety at the workplace don’t forget to report it to Cal/OSHA.

Your experienced San Jose Employment Attorney can guide you regarding your rights to have safe environment more elaborately.

Photo Credit: Shutterstock/g-stockstudio

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