California: Court of Appeal Confirms On-Duty Meals Must be 30 Minutes Minimum

In L’Chaim House, Inc. v. Div. of Labor Standards Enforcement, the California Court of Appeal confirmed that meal periods must always be at least 30 minutes in length, regardless of whether or not the meal period is on or off-duty.

This decision helps provide clarity to an exception in Wage Order 5 which states that employees working in 24-hour residential care facilities for the elderly could be provided on-duty meal periods without penalty under certain circumstances.  In L’Chaim, the employer had provided workers with on-duty meal penalties of less than 30 minutes, arguing that the Wage Order 5 exception permitted it to do so. The Court of Appeal disagreed.

While the L’Chaim decision provides clarity to this specific exception, the case demonstrates that employers should be cautious when interpreting Wage Order obligations.

Action Items