Industrial Welfare Commission Wage Order No. 5, sec. 11(D) is valid insofar as it says that health care workers can waive a second meal break during shifts longer than 12 hours. The section does not conflict with Lab. Code section 512 which allows a waiver of second meal breaks only for shifts of 12 hours or less. The Legislature never withdrew authority from the IWC to issue this exemption from meal break regulations and it made its intent clear in later legislation specifically approving this portion of Wage Order No. 5 after the original Court of Appeal decision, in this case, had invalidated the wage order.
California Supreme Court (Liu, J.); December 10, 2018; 6 Cal. 5th 443