Valles

I. BACKGROUND

Ivy Hill has been operating a Los Angeles printing facility since 1966. Since that time, its employees have been repre- sented by the Graphic Communications International Union, Local 404 (or a predecessor union). The terms and conditions of employment are governed by a collective bargaining agree- ment, which does not address rest breaks but includes two provisions regarding meal periods: One mandates non- working meal periods and the other provides for time and a half payment in the event an employee must work during a regularly scheduled meal period.1 Despite this contract lan- 1 Section 8.2 of the collective bargaining agreement reads: No employee shall be compelled to work more than five (5) hours without being permitted to have one-half (1/2) hour for lunch. No presses will operate during lunch time, except in accor- dance with the manning table. VALLES v. IVY HILL CORP. 6297 guage, from the time that the printing facility opened until June 2002, employees who worked on the first shift were not afforded lunch periods. Instead, they worked through lunch and were paid at their normal hourly rate for their working lunches. No employee…