Facts

Plaintiffs worked 12-hour shifts at Exxon's oil and gas processing plant at Las Flores Canyon in Santa Barbara County. Plaintiffs were covered by a Collective Bargaining Agreement, which did not provide for rest breaks.

PLAINTIFF'S CONTENTIONS:
Plaintiffs contended that they were entitled to two 30-minute meal breaks and three 10-minute rest breaks per shift. Plaintiffs claimed their wages, hours and working conditions were governed by IWC Wage Order 1.

DEFENDANT'S CONTENTIONS:
Defendant contended that plaintiffs were provided with lawful meal and rest periods; that plaintiffs' wages, hours, and working conditions were governed by IWC Wage Order 16, which limited their liability for past missed meal breaks to two years.

Settlement Discussions

Defendant made a CCP 998 offer in an amount approximately equal to what plaintiffs would have received under the class action settlement which they had previously rejected, as follows: $11,132 plus interest and reasonable attorney fees to Roscoe Doss; $11,511 plus interest and reasonable attorney fees to Scott Martellini; $11,559 plus interest and reasonable attorney fees to Stephen Teague; $11,954 plus interest and reasonable attorney fees to George Vranish.

Result

Judgment in favor of plaintiffs was entered in the amount of $135,190 on their claim for four years of missed meal breaks was granted on May 11, 2010. Trial on plaintiffs' remaining claims for conversion and four years of missed rest breaks was held in September 2010, which resulted in a ruling in favor of Exxon.

Other Information

At the mandatory settlement conference following the court's ruling on plaintiff's motion for summary adjudication, Exxon offered the equivalent of two years meal breaks to each plaintiff, even though plaintiffs had by then already been awarded four years on their MSA. Exxon moved for an order that plaintiffs were not entitled to attorney fees and costs under Labor Code section 218.5, which was denied. Plaintiffs then moved for an award of attorney fees and costs on the meal break adjudication totaling $332,871 (including a 1.5 multiplier on fees and costs), but were awarded $222,720 in fees (including an hourly rate of $450 and a 1.2 multiplier) plus $2,724 in costs. Plaintiffs' case began with six plaintiffs as one of two class actions asserting the same claims. Mediation on Oct. 24, 2008 resulted in a class settlement equivalent to two years of missed meal breaks which was rejected by four plaintiffs, who opted out of the settlement class and proceeded to litigate their individual claims. After 2.5 years of litigation following the class action settlement, plaintiffs' eventual judgment on the meal break claim exceeded what they would have received under the class settlement by over 100 percent.