Being told to work through break if not not following directions / job sabotage

[OLDMAN3]

You really need to check your local and regional supplements for language about breaks. Educate yourself, don't take their word for it not being in the contract. Read the contract and supplements yourself or at least call the Union hall. The contract and supplements are available online in a searchable form. Look it up yourself.
At the bare minimum, they need to allow you to take a bathroom break, otherwise they will be risking OSHA violations. See the website below:

https://www.osha.gov/pls/oshaweb/owadisp.show_document?p_table=INTERPRETATIONS&p_id=22932#TEXT1

In light of the standard's purpose of protecting employees from the hazards created when toilets are not available, it is clear that the standard requires employers to allow employees prompt access to sanitary facilities. Restrictions on access must be reasonable, and may not cause extended delays. For example, a number of employers have instituted signal or relief worker systems for employees working on assembly lines or in other jobs where any employee's absence, even for the brief time it takes to go to the bathroom, would be disruptive. Under these systems, an employee who needs to use the bathroom gives some sort of a signal so that another employee may provide relief while the first employee is away from the work station. As long as there are sufficient relief workers to assure that employees need not wait an unreasonably long time to use the bathroom, OSHA believes that these systems comply with the standard.

OSHA has interpreted the above standard to mean that when you have to use the rest room you can not be delayed more than 10 minutes.

 

[Kis124]

We do get bathroom trips but they always say hurry up. My response is that the bathroom is on the other side of the building and I don't walk very fast lol so it's almost like a break...and when I am covering customer counter, even if I'm there at 3:30am, most likely I don't get more than 15 minutes to sit before starting again. Last time I did that I worked 10.5 hours without a real break

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[cthager1s]

Our pre-loaders work hard and deserve their 10 minute break. There has not been 1 day they have not received it. Try talking with another sup. or the stew. about your problem.

 

[Dracula]

Managers get fired over this. Check your State laws as well (department of labor). Our state mandates a 10 minute break for every 4 hours worked....3 ten minute breaks if you work 10 or more minutes over 8 hours in addition to a meal period. Part time workers get a 10 minute break if they work over 3 hours. You are not a slave. You are probably owed back-pay, file a grievance and quote State and Federal labor laws, along with contract language. Next time he says you can't have a break tell him you will have to check with the Department of Labor to make sure he is not violating the law.

We went through this last year. If I remember correctly, it is not a Federal law for part-timers, and some Eastern states don't have laws either. To make it worse, The Atlantic supplement (I think) provides no break for part-timers.

Sounds wrong, but if you read the Atlantic supplement, sure enough, no break. A pathetic excuse for union leadership there.

 

[Kis124]

Yeah..basically if you aren't full time, you don't matter

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[By The Book]

No break...none, zip, nada. We can go to the bathroom, but that's it. Sometimes the sup lets us grab a couple hits off a smoke between trailers but no official break

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Do they add it to your time card that you know of? You would have to write down your punch to punch times for a few weeks to verify this.

 

[Kis124]

They pay us from start time til we punch out. Hard to believe but our payroll person is honest. Never had an issue. Only time I know of that they change our times is if we start early or they need help after we punch out

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[bleedinbrown58]

We do get bathroom trips but they always say hurry up. My response is that the bathroom is on the other side of the building and I don't walk very fast lol so it's almost like a break...and when I am covering customer counter, even if I'm there at 3:30am, most likely I don't get more than 15 minutes to sit before starting again. Last time I did that I worked 10.5 hours without a real break

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Check your supplement...everyone is entitled to contractual breaks.

 

[Kis124]

My supplement doesn't really cover much for part time except for wages,vacation and that kind of stuff. But it does cover a boatload for full time employees. I'm not even sure if there is a shop steward on my shift anymore.

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[czalinsky]

We don't get breaks. Even during peak

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Neither do we here in Greenville SC. We came in at 1am last season and still didn't get one.