Why people use this
It costs nothing to find out where you stand, nothing goes to your employer, and what you send goes to a real employment lawyer licensed in California — not a database, not a lead list. You do not need to know whether what happened was against the law; that is what the lawyer works out once they have read your file.
What this is about
A meal break is not just time away from a task — California has rules about when it must start, how long it must be, and whether you can be asked to stay available during it.
Things people describe
- You eat at your station because the floor cannot be left.
- Your break starts well into the shift.
- You are called back partway through.
- A break is recorded that you did not take.
If any of this sounds like your situation, that does not tell you whether anything went wrong — it tells you it may be worth having someone look.
What helps
- Time records showing when breaks were logged.
- Rotas or schedules.
- Any written instruction about breaks.
We ask for documents because they show what happened better than memory does. If you do not have something, say so; a gap is a normal part of a case and not a reason to stop.
In California
The meal-period rules sit in Labor Code § 512 and the wage orders, and Brinker v. Superior Court is the case courts read them through. Whether a break counts is a question about the facts.
Claims about work usually have time limits, and they can be shorter than people expect. We cannot tell you what your own time limit is — that depends on your situation. If this matters to you, it is worth finding out sooner rather than later.
What happens if you start
Your answers and your time records go to a firm, who decide whether it is something they can take on.
About us
Worker Rights Line is not a law firm and cannot give you legal advice. We help you put your situation and your documents together, and pass them to an employment law firm in California who decides whether they can act for you.
Reviewed by Jelmer de Boer on 2026-08-19.
Based on: Labor Code § 512; IWC wage orders; Brinker v. Superior Court (2012) 53 Cal.4th 1004. To be checked at review.