California employers are prohibited from rounding time-clock punches for employee meal periods, according to a recent ruling by the state’s high court.
Employees in the Golden State generally must receive a 30-minute unpaid meal break for every five hours they work. “The meal period provisions are designed to prevent even minor infringements on meal period requirements, and rounding is incompatible with that objective,” wrote Justice Goodwin Liu for the California Supreme Court on Feb. 25.
Additionally, the court said, if time records show evidence of noncompliant meal periods, the court will assume a violation was committed unless the employer proves otherwise.
