My friend has been working at a company for over 4 years. At first as a temp on an as needed basis and for the last 1.5 years at 35hrs/week – 7 hours shifts.
Recently her employer changed payroll conpanies, when she realized something. She is now getting paid for her untaken breaks. In California employees are entitled to a 10min break for every 4 hours of work and 30min break for every 5 hours of work. When she was hired she signed a waiver acknowledging that she wont be able to take breaks at work due to staffing, but CA labor law states, that she should be paid for the untaken breaks. So, for the last 4+ years she has not been paid for the breaks.
Also, the company that she works for might change in the near future, meaning she will work at the same place, but be employed thru a different company. The original company might lose their contract due to issues with employees not getting paid on time and other on-going issues.
What should she do?
File a claim with the CA labor commissioneroffice?
Find a lawyer who focuses on employee rights?
Wait until a new company takes over or will it be too late by then?
Any advise is greatly appreciated.