California High Court Rules Sleep Periods Considered 'Hours Worked'

In Mendiola v. CPS Security Solutions, Inc., S212704 (Jan. 8 2015), California’s Supreme Court reaffirmed the rule that “hours worked” under California law includes all hours an employee is under the employer’s control, even when the employee is not actively engaged in carrying out his or her job duties.  Significantly, the court held that a sleep period during the time an employee is “on call” cannot be excluded from “hours worked” by agreement between the employer and employee.  The court disapproved Seymore v. Metson Marine, Inc. 194 Cal.App.4th 361 (2011), which held an employer and employee could agree to exclude such “on call” sleep periods from “hours worked.”  It also limited to the facts of the case the holding in Monzon v. Schaefer Ambulance Service, Inc. 224 Cal.App.3d 16 (1990) that an eight hour sleep period could be excluded by agreement from hours worked in a 24 hour shift for ambulance drivers and attendants. 

Continue reading here.

Information contained in this publication is intended for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice or opinion, nor is it a substitute for the professional judgment of an attorney.