Risky Scheduling – Two Shifts in One Workday

Restaurant operators risk increased payroll expense and legal liability when they schedule employees to work two shifts in one workday, for example, scheduling servers to work a lunch shift of several hours and then to return that evening to work a dinner shift of several more hours. Under California and New York law, such “split shifts” generally occur whenever an employer schedules an employee with an unpaid break of more than one hour in a day, other than time off for bona fide meal or rest breaks. In California, New York and other parts of the country, state law requires employers to pay employees an extra hour of pay for each day employees are required to work a split-shift.  If employees file suit for an operator’s failure to pay such “split shift premium wages,” restaurants may also be required to pay the employees’ attorney’s fees. 

California: 'Split-Shift' PremiumsUnder California law, for each workday an employee works a split-shift, the restaurant must pay…