Months after a federal lawsuit accused Houston Methodist Hospital of not paying nurses for working through lunch, similar allegations have surfaced at North Cypress (Texas) Medical Center, which is also in the Houston area, according to CultureMap.
In May, Joy Corcion, a former nurse at Houston Methodist, filed a lawsuit on behalf of more than 5,000 of her colleagues against the hospital. The lawsuit alleges employees of the hospital, including nurses, nursing assistants and patient-care assistants, are required to work during their lunch breaks, according to the report.
However, Houston Methodist disputed the claims and released a written statement saying the hospital employees receive pay fair pay for the hours they work.
Now, North Cypress Medical Center is also under fire, as a nurse has alleged she was required to work during her unpaid lunch breaks, according to the report.
The nurse's attorney, Alex Mabry, told Fox 26 that essentially all the direct care employees in varying degrees have been expected to work through lunch breaks without pay.
But the attorney for North Cypress Medical Center claims it abides by federal guidelines and laws when it comes to meal breaks, according to the Fox 26 report. The attorney said in the report that if a nurse is interrupted even for one minute during a meal break then that individual is paid for the entire half hour.