Starbucks Must Pay Workers for Tasks After Clock-out

California Supreme Court declares that a rule under federal law does not apply under state law.

July 30, 2018

SAN FRANCISCO – The California Supreme Court has ruled that Starbucks must pay workers for the small amounts of time they spend on job tasks that occur after the business is closed, such as locking up or moving furniture, Reuters reports. 

A rule under the federal wage law excuses companies from compensating workers for small amounts of time that are difficult to record, but the California Court stated that rule was not applicable under California law.

U.S. Chamber of Commerce has warned that the decision, which could be costly for many businesses, would encourage workers to file lawsuits seeking pay for “trifling absurdities.”

In 2012, employee Douglas Troester filed a lawsuit against Starbucks, claiming that after workers clocked out, they were required to transmit sales data, set an alarm and sometimes walk coworkers to their cars, a combination of tasks that might take as much as 10 extra minutes each day.

In the 17 months he worked at Starbucks, Troester said he performed about 13 hours of unpaid work and was owed about $100. Originally, a federal judge in San Francisco dismissed the case, but Troester appealed, and the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals asked the California Supreme Court to decide whether the rule under federal law also applied under state law.

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