Employee Breaks

MEAL TIME

California law requires that all non-exempt employees must take a 30-minute, unpaid meal break each day when working more than five hours in a day. When working fewer than 5 hours in a day, there is no paid lunch break. This lunch break must be taken within the first 6 hours of work performed. Such non-exempt employees may not skip the meal break, and working through your meal break does not entitle you to leave work early or arrive late. Employees are permitted to leave the premises while on a meal break; however, any additional time spent on break over and above the allowed 30 minutes is not paid time, and any violations of the meal break time limit may subject the employee to attendance incidents and/or disciplinary action.

The official lunch period is from 12:00pm to 3:00pm. Employees may take a later lunch if necessary but no later than 6 hours after arrival time.

Late Return from Breaks: Employees who are late to return from a lunch break will earn one-half (1/2) incident.

Each non-exempt employee (on an hourly rate) must to keep an accurate record of the daily lunch period. HR will place a paper time card in all comm. boxes every Friday (example below). This will follow the same week as our pay period, which is Friday to Thursday. The employee will keep the time card all week to note their daily lunch periods. These should be recorded at the time that lunch is taken, not later in the day, to ensure that the time records are accurate.

The time card is filled in for the week and turned in to the HR Department by close of business on Thursdays. It will be kept with your timesheet for the same pay period. Each employee must sign the bottom of the timecard before turning it in.

BREAKS

California law requires that all non-exempt employees will receive one, 10-minute uninterrupted paid break for every four hours worked. Leo Hamel Fine Jewelers policy is to allow 15-minute paid breaks instead of 10-minute breaks. Non-exempt employees on break should not be informed of or requested to answer any work-related information and while on break are not permitted to read or respond to work related emails or calls that they may receive on their cell phone, laptop, or tablet. Any employee who violates this policy is subject to disciplinary action leading up to and including termination.

Generally, breaks should be taken as close to the middle of the work period as is possible. Employees are permitted to leave the premises while on break; however, any additional time over the 15 minutes that is taken is not paid time, and any violations of the break time limit may subject the employee to disciplinary action. Employees may not combine their breaks with each other or with the meal break. Additionally, working through your rest periods does not entitle you to leave work early or arrive late.

Because breaks should be taken in the middle of the work period rather than at the beginning or end, no breaks are permitted during the first hour of your work schedule or during the last hour of your work schedule. An exception to this rule may be invoked during the last 2 weeks before Christmas. Contact your HR Administrator for details.

Late Return from Breaks: Employees who are late to return from any 15-minute break will earn one-half (1/2) incident.

Employees who are on break are asked to not disturb employees who are not on break so as not to interrupt their workflow, and instead to direct their conversation and comments to those who are also on break at the same time. Breaks are not to be taken in the work areas; instead, employees on break should leave the premises or go to the break room.

Employees who work in the same department should confer with the department supervisor before taking their break at the same time, so as not to leave the department understaffed.

EXEMPT EMPLOYEES

Exempt employees are not subject to the laws regarding either meal breaks or paid breaks. However, as a company policy, exempt employees should not take more than a 15-minute break in the morning and afternoon, or more than 30 minutes for lunch, unless there is a business purpose for taking a longer lunch (lunch with a vendor or customer for example).

ESTATE BUYERS

Since there are no official break rooms in the buy offices, estate buyers will indicate when they are on a break by displaying the official “On Break” signs that are available in each buy office.

INFORM RECEPTION IF YOU LEAVE THE BUILDING:

Employees from the following departments must inform Reception if you leave the building on a break or for any reason: Sales, Repair, Inventory, Estate Buyers, HR/Administrative. This will save Reception from wasting time looking for you if you are not in the building. Non-exempt employees should not be called on their cell phones if they are out of the building on break for anything work related.

NO EMPLOYEES IN OR OUT OF THE BUY OFFICE OR SHOWROOM DOOR AFTER WE OPEN

We don’t want to have employees walking in and out of the buy office door when customers are waiting to be seen, since it could make the customer feel as though he or she is not being helped or is being ignored by employees. And coming in or out of the showroom door can cause unnecessary commotion. When leaving for or coming back from breaks or appointments, please always use the back-door downstairs.

One exception is for salespeople, assistants, and the receptionist, who are allowed to enter and exit from the showroom door as a matter of practicality, and executives who may enter or exit from different doors at different times.