Amazon Sued for Wage & Hour Violations at Calif. Fulfillment Centers
Two former Amazon employees are suing the company for wage and hour violations they claim occurred at Amazon’s fulfillment locations in California, including San Bernardino and Patterson.
The Amazon wage and hour lawsuit was filed in Stanislaus County Superior Court last month and is seeking class action status on the grounds that other Amazon employees may have suffered similar wage and hour violations.
Amazon has more than 70 fulfillment centers and more than 90,000 full-time Amazon employees in the U.S., according to it’s website.
The Amazon class action lawsuit alleges the company deprived workers of meal breaks, overtime and other requirements under California labor law.
Lawsuit Details Alleged Wage and Hour Violations by Amazon
California wage and hour laws, in addition to federal stipulations, provide guidance for employers as well as employees about how to handle working issues such as overtime and breaks.
The violations alleged in the Amazon wage and hour lawsuit go back at least four years and include:
- Failure to pay overtime after eight hours in a day or 40 hours in a week,
- Failure to provide meal breaks every five hours,
- Failure to pay premium pay for working a split shift, and
Rounding clock-in and clock-out time in favor of Amazon.
Wage and Hour Violations and Required Protections in California
California wage and hour attorneys are hearing more complaints from employees in these situations throughout the state. Any wage and hour violation could lead to an individual wage and hour lawsuit or group class action lawsuit.
There are strict rules in California with regard to overtime. The California Department of Industrial Relations shares that employees can not be required to work more than 8 hours in a given work day or more than 40 hours in a work week unless they are provided one-and-a-half times their regular rate of pay for all hours worked beyond that period.
Furthermore, there are specific stipulations related to meal periods. An employee cannot work for a period of more than 5 hours per day without getting an appropriate meal period of at least 30 minutes, except in situations in which the work day of the employee is no more than six hours and the meal period is declined by the approval of both the employer and employee.
Employers cannot claim ignorance when engaging in practices that violate wage and hour laws at the state and federal level. They must be mindful of issues under their review that could violate laws and lead to legal claims. Employees may have recourse in the form of filing a wage and hour lawsuit against an employer who has crossed the line.
If you have been subjected to California wage and hour violations, contact the experienced lawyers at Bradley/Grombacher for a FREE case evaluation.
