IBP Loses Appeal Over Lunch Breaks

IBP Inc., the world’s largest meatpacker, must pay about $200,000 to 16 employees for making them work during their unpaid lunch breaks, the U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans ruled. The court said the maintenance workers are entitled to damages awarded by a Texas jury because IBP interrupted their 30-minute breaks to fix machinery at an Amarillo, Texas, beef-processing plant. Workers testified they were “frequently interrupted by supervisors” to fix equipment that, when shut down, could cost the company up to $1,300 a minute. IBP said the meal breaks were unpaid “personal time.” The workers “had to carry radios and couldn’t leave the premises” during breaks, their attorney said. Shares of Dakota City, Neb.-based IBP rose 13 cents to close at $20.38 on the NYSE.