Trial Court Properly Denied Class Certification Of Meal/Rest Break Claims

Cacho v. Eurostar, Inc., 2019 WL 7180349 (Cal. Ct. App. 2019)

David Cacho and Regina Silva asserted class claims against their former employer (Eurostar), alleging Eurostar violated California wage and hour laws by failing to provide employees with required meal and rest breaks and compelling to employees to work off the clock at Eurostar's Warehouse Shoe Sale retail shoe stores in California. The trial court denied class certification to the claims on the ground that plaintiffs failed to demonstrate common issues of law or fact predominated over individual issues and plaintiffs' claims were not typical of the class. The Court of Appeal affirmed denial of class certification, holding Eurostar did not have a uniform practice of denying required rest breaks. The Court also held that individual questions predominate because the evidence of employees feeling pressured to work off the clock was "anecdotal and specific to particular managers, circumstances and locations." S