Advocating For California Employee Rights

Nurse files lawsuit after wage and hour laws allegedly violated

On Behalf of | Sep 20, 2017 | Uncategorized

Employers in California and across the United States are always looking for ways to cut costs while raising profits. Sometimes, these cost-cutting measures may unlawfully affect workers. There are wage and hour laws at the federal and state level that provide legal protection for all workers. When these laws are broken by employers, legal action can be pursued. A lawsuit was recently filed by a nurse in another state over allegations that his employer unfairly docked the pay of their workers.

The lawsuit was filed against a health care company and alleges that nurses and other medical workers were wrongfully docked a half hour’s pay each shift. According to the lawsuit, the company automatically 30 minutes out of each 12 hour shift for a meal break. The plaintiff claims that, due to the nature of his role, he and other co-workers often were forced to skip this 30 minute meal break and were not paid.

Nurses often have to eat on the run or eat at their desks due to the nature of their role, the lawsuit asserts. The plaintiff alleges that he and other nurses should be paid if they have to work through their meal breaks. The plaintiff was allegedly fired when he brought these concerns to the attention of his superiors.

Neglecting to pay employees for work done is a direct violation of wage and hour laws in California and across the country. Workers who have not been paid for work, or have been the subject of unfair acts by an employer can take legal action. A successfully litigated lawsuit could provide compensation to help ease the financial burden that comes with lost wages.

Source: sltrib.com, “Utah nurse says Intermountain Healthcare cheats its nurses out of lunch and pay“, Mike Gorrell, Sept. 19, 2017

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