Any AFSCME Public Safety member will tell you that during an emergency, you have to act fast — regardless of what you are doing at that time. And on many shifts, that means meal breaks are the first thing to disappear.
But first responders are still entitled to paid meal breaks under the Federal Labor Standards Act (FLSA) if they remain on call.
For four members of Local 260 (AFSCME Florida), their first union contract helped them get the compensation they earned over years of missed meal breaks.
“As flight paramedics we can’t take the helicopter through a drive-thru after a call, so a lot of the time the idea of a meal break never even crosses your mind,” said Heath Schmidt, a critical care paramedic with UF Health ShandsCair Critical Care Transport Team and vice president of Local 260. “But we formed our union through AFSCME a few years ago so we would have a voice and support when problems arose, and this is a case where it made all the difference in the world.”
Over the years, Schmidt said management told him and his team not to even bother clocking out for lunch. That would have been fine except they discovered earlier this year that the time was still being deducted from their paycheck — though they never took those meal breaks. They also discovered that, over the years, similar issues were found and resolved at other sites in Florida.
Schmidt and the three other members brought in Local 260 President Paul Tucker and AFSCME Florida staff to find a solution. Ultimately, they filed a grievance requesting lost pay for three years of unpaid meal breaks — well over $5,000 for each of the four members.
“To me, this is a perfect example of the union difference being part of AFSCME has made,” said Schmidt. “Before, first responders like us always got the scraps because we didn’t have a seat at the table. But now, we have a process to stand up for what we deserve and the support of our union when we do it.”
After reviewing the grievance, UF Health agreed with Local 260 and the four members will see the money in this month’s paychecks. And they are not done — Local 260 is already pursuing problems found in shift differential pay and more.
“I can’t say enough good things about what the union has done,” said Schmidt. “AFSCME has changed our lives for the better and made real changes that will continue to do good for years to come.”