1. Meal Break Class Action Practice

In California, employers must by law provide an off-duty 30 minute meal period to employees on or before the fifth and tenth hours of work. If an employer fails to provide the off-duty meal period, then the employer must pay the employee premium pay amounting to one hour of pay per day at the employee's regular rate of pay. In 2007, the California Supreme Court held that employees can seek back pay for missed meal periods going back 3 years. Under California's unfair competition law, this period of time is extended to 4 years.

Our firm has amassed a significant amount of experience handling missed meal period class actions on behalf of California employees, including truck drivers, bus drivers, couriers, and security guards, among others. Indeed, we have brought a number of missed meal period class actions throughout the State of California that have resulted in substantial recoveries for the class.

2. Unpaid Overtime Class and Collective Action Practice

In California, employers must pay daily overtime after 8 hours of work at a rate of 1.5 times the employee's regular rate of pay. Under both California and Federal law, employers must pay weekly overtime for all hours worked by employees over 40 hours per week. Under federal law, employees who have not been paid overtime can recover their unpaid overtime pay, as well as liquidated (double) damages, and attorneys' fees. Under California state law, employees who have not been paid overtime can bring suit to recover their unpaid overtime pay, interest and attorneys' fees incurred. Many overtime cases arise from misclassification of workers as "exempt" when, in fact, they are "non-exempt," and, thus, entitled to overtime pay.

We have successully prosecuted unpaid overtime class and collective actions under the Fair Labor Standards Act and the California Labor Code. We have represented packers, loaders, limousine drivers, and security guards, among others, in individual and class cases alleging claims for unpaid overtime.

3. Sexual Harassment Practice

Sexual harassment is a form of sex discrimination that violates state and federal law. Unwanted sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature constitute sexual harassment when submission to or rejection of this conduct explicitly or implicitly affects an individual's employment, unreasonably interferes with an individual's work performance or creates an intimidating, hostile or offensive work environment. Sexual harassment can occur in a variety of circumstances, including but not limited to the following: the harasser can be the vistim's supervisor, an agent of the employer, a supervisor in another area, a co-worker, or a non-employee; the victim as well as the harasser may be a man or a woman; the victim does not have to be the opposite sex; the victim does not have to be the person harassed but could be anyone affected by the offensive conduct; sexual harassment may occur without any economic injury to or discharge of the victim; the harasser's conduct must be unwelcome.

Our attorneys have handled -- and continue to handle -- numerous individual and multi-plaintiff sexual harassment and sexually hostile work environment cases. We have handled a number of sexual harassment cases involving several plaintiffs that have resulted in cause findings at the EEOC and/or sizable settlements for our clients.

4. Retaliation and Wrongful Termination Practice

Under both state and federal law, it is illegal for employers to retaliate against employees who make complaints about illegal discrimination, harassment or other illegal practices. We have represented a number of individuals in cases alleging wrongful termination on the basis of unlawful retaliation that have resulted in substantial recoveries. Although our practice increasingly focuses on class actions, we remain interested in pursuing strong individual retaliation claims.