Prepared Foods Department Break Time
Grievance #: 256
The union filed a grievance the day before yesterday (Wednesday Aug 19) on behalf of 30 Prepared Foods Dept employees for missed break time during a two week period in July. In reviewing the schedules and break logs, we found at least one instance during that period where these 30 employees did not get your full break time.
However, this grievance is not about any one person; rather, it's for the department as a whole, to show management that we are paying attention. If people aren't getting their full breaks because there isn't enough staff, management needs to hire more people! And, if we win this grievance, everyone involved will get some money in back pay for the time they missed.
Management is claiming that some of these instances of missed break time are due to employees inaccuratly filling out the break log. This is likely true, in some cases. As we stated in the grievance meeting, the data in our report came from the completed RFI materials HR provided us with. These consisted of department schedules and break logs. We sifted through the materials by hand, and there were many instances where it was difficult to read the handwriting or there were clear inconsistencies and missing information. However, we need to present data to file a grievance, and the data as a whole still stands. It paints a clear picture of systemic issues around break time in the Prepared Foods Department. As we told management, if they would like to double-check our work, they are more than welcome to! But if they cared in the first place, they would have started following up with their employees to ensure everyone is getting their contractually obligated break time a long time ago.
If you work in the Prepared Foods Department, be as accurate (and write clearly!) with your break logs going forward. We will keep grieving this issue until management changes the culture. If you work in another department, take your full break every day! Let's not let management get away with erroding our Article 15 rights.