Kelly Rose v. Hobby Lobby Stores, Inc.

Oakland, California employment law lawyers represented the parties in a violation of the "suitable seating" requirements of California Industrial Welfare Commission Wage Order No. 72001 order.



The workspaces for cashiers at Hobby Lobby stores, called "cashwraps" or "cash wraps," do not provide seating for cashiers.[2] Hobby Lobby manufactures its own cashwraps, which have a uniform design and configuration in all Hobby Lobby retail stores throughout the country. Each cashwrap consists of three modules in a U-shaped arrangement: a register stand, a checkout counter, and a privacy panel. As of the time of trial, Hobby Lobby had used the same cashwrap design for at least 25 years; the design long predated Hobby Lobby's 2011 entry into California. The area within a cashwrap where a cashier stands measures 24.5 inches in width and 54 inches in length. There are about 10 cashwraps in each Hobby Lobby store in California.



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LABOR LAW. SUITABLE SEATING UNDER PAGA. The case addresses an employee's claim against a former employer under the Private Attorneys General Act for violations of the suitable seating requirements specified in Industrial Welfare Commission Wage Order No. 7-2001, focusing on whether the nature of the work at the cashwrap reasonably permits sitting.



LABOR LAW. BENCH TRIAL FINDINGS. The court evaluates whether substantial evidence supports the trial court's findings that Hobby Lobby cashiers do not experience lulls in standing tasks under section 14(B), which would require suitable seating provisions.



PROCEDURAL LAW. DOCTRINE OF IMPLIED FINDINGS. The appeal discusses forfeiture principles when a party fails to object to alleged deficiencies in a trial court's statement of decision which omitted findings on an asserted core issue.



Key Phrases California Court of Appeals Labor Code Private Attorneys General Act Suitable seating provisions Industrial Welfare Commission Wage Order Substantial evidence standard

Affirmed