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LA sanitation workers expected to receive $26 million settlement

The Los Angeles City Council is expected to approve a $26 million settlement for trash truck drivers who were denied meal breaks.
The Los Angeles City Council is expected to approve a $26 million settlement for trash truck drivers who were denied meal breaks.
(
Flickr Creative Commons/LAWad
)

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LA sanitation workers expected to receive $26 million settlement

Trash truck drivers who say they were denied meal breaks are expected to receive a $26 million settlement tomorrow from the Los Angeles City Council. 

Los Angeles city officials and attorneys for more than 1,000 current and former drivers reached the deal back in February. However, it was not publicly discussed by officials at the time because it still required approval from a judge. With that approval by a Superior Court judge in place, the city council is free to vote on the settlement.

Attorneys for the sanitation workers say they were denied proper meal breaks because the city imposed so many rules on what they could and could not do, like sleep in their trucks or veer too far off their routes. The judge agreed that the denial of meal breaks was a violation of state law.

The drivers suffered as much as $40 million in damages, according to a city council motion on the settlement deal.  But the two sides agreed to the $26 million settlement back in February. Money for the settlement will come from the city’s Solid Waste Resources Revenue Fund.

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