Class Action Claims KFC Violated California Labor Law

San Diego, CAA class action lawsuit against KFC claims that the fast food giant’s operating policies and practices systematically neglected its Golden State workers and failed to provide them with meal breaks and rest periods to which they were entitled under the California labor law. The plaintiff also argues that KFC’s practices negatively affect the well-being of employees. Failure to provide breaks and rest periods can lead to unpaid wages, and often less than minimum wage.

Class Action Claims KFC Violated California Labor Law Rebecca Villa filed the claim for herself and other similarly situated KFC workers. She argues that KFC violated the California labor code by failing to:

pay minimum wages
pay overtime wages
provide required meal and rest periods
provide accurate itemized wage statements
provide wages when due
reimburse for required business expenses
provide gratuities

According to Villa, KFC employees were not provided with their legally mandated breaks and rest periods due to KFC’s rigid scheduling practices and understaffing issues. Her allegations are similar to many other wage theft lawsuits fired at fast-food chains and franchises: they point to a systemic problem rather than isolated incidents, with workers claiming they were routinely denied their legally required breaks, even though California has robust labor protections in place. And the workers’ claims of systematic denial may indicate a deeper issue with how the company manages scheduling and staffing at its California locations.

Employers would be wise to familiarize themselves with meal and rest break compliance. You cannot employ someone for more than five hours without providing an unpaid, off-duty meal period of at least 30 minutes. The first meal period must be provided no later than the end of the employee’s fifth hour of work. Under California law, non-exempt workers are entitled to specific break periods that KFC allegedly failed to provide:

A 30-minute unpaid meal break for shifts over 5 hours
A second 30-minute meal break for shifts over 10 hours
10-minute paid rest breaks for every 4 hours worked

When employers fail to provide these breaks, they must pay employees one additional hour of regular wages for each day the violation occurred – known as “premium pay.” According to CalChamber:

For each workday that you fail to provide an employee a meal break as required, you owe the employee one additional hour of pay at the employee’s regular rate of pay. The additional hour of pay is a wage owed to the employee. Employees have up to three years to file a claim for unpaid wages.
If either rest break is not given or is interrupted, you owe the employee one hour of pay at the regular rate of pay, which you must include in the next paycheck.

Defendant KFC Settlement

Defendant KFC claims that any lapse in providing their workers with rest periods and meal breaks was incidental, rather than deliberate or systemic, and that the company’s practices and policies comply with California’s wage and hour laws. KFC, however, may be suffering from a lapse in memory. Back in 2012, Law360 reported that a $3.55 million settlement resolved allegations that KFC didn’t provide its Golden State employees meals and rest breaks and required them to perform off-the-clock work during closing shifts. The deal was intended to compensate more than 13,000 current and former KFC workers who have worked at the fast food chain’s California locations dating back to 2005.

The 2009 lawsuit alleged KFC routinely violated its internal break policy: it failed to give its restaurant employees full meal and rest breaks as required under state law. In 2010, the lawsuit was given class action status. However, before reaching the settlement, KFC argued that the lawsuit could not proceed as a class action because some employees signed written waivers and others orally volunteered to waive breaks.