June 8, 2007: Local 396 Teamsters at Waste Management in Chino and Corona California were told that their new contract would pay them for all of their meal breaks, including the second meal period that is required by California law after 10 hours.

During negotiations for the new contract, Waste Management officials told the union negotiators that the new contract would give Teamster members paid meal periods.

A Mistake?

But after the contract was ratified, Waste Management said it had made a mistake.

In a letter distributed to Local 396 members, the company said that the language wasn’t supposed to cover the second meal break—and the company wasn’t going to pay for any meal breaks.

Local 396 filed an unfair labor practice with the NLRB. But then the local dropped the ULP after Waste Management agreed to pay for the first meal break.

Wage and Hour Suit

Meals and breaks are a concern for all WMI Teamsters. Waste Management routinely forces Teamsters to work off the clock during their meals and break periods.

Teamsters at Waste Management in California have filed a lawsuit against the company for wage and hour violations.

Their case is similar to a successful class action lawsuit against UPS that resulted in an $87 million victory for more than 20,000 UPS drivers.

To participate or learn more about the lawsuit, go to www.payWMIdrivers.com or contact York Law Corporation at (800) 939-1832 or www.yorklawcorp.com.