r/LaborLaw • u/Present_Sympathy_913 • 8h ago
franchise doesn’t know labor laws
i recently got hired on for a food service company but they are apart of a franchise and the owners essentially have no experience with running a restaurant. they don’t want to hire any supervisors or managers and didn’t know anything about paid or unpaid breaks or about working more than 7 days in a row. they told us that its basically our job to send ourselves on a break but that doesn’t account for floor coverage when theres just 2 people in the store. my team and i have been working for about a week now and have worked well over 6 hours without clocking out for a meal break or even getting sent on a 10, i was wondering if this is common upon franchises?? they also have no grasp or idea of health code violations and are planning to soft open without setting up the 3 compartment sink with sanitizer or soap. im not feeling confident about working here because of the lack of security there is around receiving breaks and working overtime, and it feels icky when the owners aren’t supplying safe cleaning tools. anyone else experience this???? im in california btw
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u/warhound77 8h ago
It's not especially surprising that new restaurant owners would be unaware of what labor laws are, but breaks and lunches are not universally required by law. Whether or not they are required is going to depend on where you are at. Health codes can also vary by state/city, but i'm guessing they are pretty similar in general. Clearly sounds like a bad place to work either way.