Taco Bell Faces Sanctions Jury Rules Fast-Food Chain Violated Wage-Hour Laws

Dozens of Taco Bell restaurants in Washington willfully violated state wage and hour laws, denying overtime pay to as many as 13,000 workers, a jury ruled Tuesday.

The 12-member King County Superior Court jury - which required only a 10-vote majority to reach a verdict - was unanimous on the two most critical questions: that the violations showed a pattern of failing to pay overtime wages and were committed willfully with an intent to deprive employees of pay.

The seven-man, five-woman jury had deliberated for 7-1/2 days over a two-week period since receiving the class-action case March 26. The 212-page jury form included three pages each for 68 Taco Bell employees who testified, including seven who brought the initial case.

The amount of back pay and damages to be awarded will be set in a separate hearing, the format of which has yet to be determined.

Taco Bell, an Irvine, Calif.-based Mexican fast-food chain that is a unit of giant PepsiCo Inc., said it would appeal.

Company Vice President Jonathan Blum said that because company officials believe any violations “were isolated incidences and not a systemwide problem across the state, we plan to appeal this decision on class liability and believe the appellate court will agree with us.”

The company earlier had said there were a few “unfortunate incidents” but no pattern of abuse.

Lawyers for the plaintiffs said they would probably seek a court order from Judge Sharon S. Armstrong to bring Taco Bell into compliance.

“I’m really, really glad” for the jury’s verdict, said plaintiffs’ attorney Rebecca Roe. “I just felt that this case was really important.”

Roe said the lawsuit was necessary because lack of personnel prevented the state Department of Labor and Industries from adequately enforcing the law.

In general, the violations involved employees waiting until after they started their shifts to clock in, working after clocking out, working during meal and rest breaks, and failing to record work on company records.