Earlier this week, the California Supreme Court, in Kilby v. CVS Pharmacy, clarified that the suitable seating requirement in several California wage orders may entitle employees to a seat when their tasks can be accomplished while seated. Specifically, the language states: “All working employees shall be provided with suitable seats when the nature of the work reasonably permits the use of seats.” There has been no interpretation as to what seats are “suitable,” who determines the “nature of the work,” or under what circumstances the “nature of the work” “reasonably permits” suitable seats.

The Ninth Circuit asked the California Supreme Court to weigh-in and interpret this language after its application arose in two federal appeals involving separate industries. In the underlying federal appeals cases, clerks/cashiers at CVS and tellers at a bank alleged that their employers failed to provide them with adequate seating.
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