Rest Breaks

Rodriguez v. E.M.E., Inc.

In the underlying action, appellant Juan Rodriguez asserted putative class claims against respondent E.M.E., Inc. (E.M.E.) for violations of the Labor Code, Industrial Welfare Commission (IWC) Wage Order No. 1-2001 (Wage Order 1-2001), and the unfair competition law (UCL) (Bus. & Prof. Code, § 17200 et seq.). After granting appellant’s motion for class certification, the trial court granted E.M.E.’s motion for summary judgment on appellant’s claims, which relied on Brinker Restaurant Corp. v. Superior Court (2012) 53 Cal.4th 1004, 1026 (Brinker). We conclude that summary judgment was incorrectly granted with respect to appellant’s claims relating to rest breaks, as Brinker explained that under the applicable wage order provision, rest breaks in an eight-hour shift should fall on either side of the meal break, absent factors rendering such scheduling impracticable. We therefore affirm in part, reverse in part, and remand for further proceedings.