Non-Union Meal Break Penalties Trigger Other Derivative Penalties if Handled Incorrectly

Non-Union Meal Break Penalties Trigger Other Derivative Penalties if Handled Incorrectly

Entertainment industry employees not given a break within six hours of work are entitled to a penalty of one hour’s pay at their pay rate (see CA Wage Order 12).  Because the law contains an exclusion for union employees working under a collective bargaining agreement that provides for meal periods and a corresponding penalty if violated, the statutory one-hour penalty is only applicable to non-union production workers.  Because these meal penalties are a type of premium wage, the California Supreme Court recently ruled in Naranjo v. Spectrum Security Services, Inc. that failure to pay them properly can trigger late pay wage penalties and wage statement penalties like any other wages that are paid late or incorrectly.  This ruling reinforces the importance of ensuring correct payment of meal penalties to avoid potential derivative penalties, so production companies should be vigilant in this arena.