# Taco Bell - employees must eat discounted lunch in building. **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [July 29, 2018, 11:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/taco-bell-employees-must-eat-discounted-lunch-in-building/818786 "2018-07-29T23:52:27Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2018, 11:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/taco-bell-employees-must-eat-discounted-lunch-in-building/818786/1 "2018-07-29T23:52:27Z")
I don’t understand this policy. A employee is allowed one discounted meal a day. What difference does it make if it’s given to a friend or family member? Either way, one discounted meal is provided. If the employee wants to skip a meal it’s not costing Taco Bell anything. I had a job that restricted us from being seen on break. My boss felt it reflected badly on the store for customers to see employees sitting around. We left on lunch breaks or sat in the dingy break room. I do find a “discounted” Taco Bell meal kind of funny. My meals at Taco Bell usually cost maybe $5.50. What’s the employee discount? Maybe? $2 😉 be still my heart. The boss is just to generous. LOL [https://www.google.com/amp/s/amp.foodandwine.com/taco-bell-lunch-breaks](https://www.google.com/amp/s/amp.foodandwine.com/taco-bell-lunch-breaks) > [@](#): > > Taco Bell’s lunchtime restrictions only apply under certain circumstances. Basically, if an employee brings their own food to work, or buys Taco Bell food at full-price, they’re free to leave and eat it wherever. But, if they purchase Taco Bell items for lunch using their employee discount, they’re required to stay in the building. > > The company originally instated the policy to ensure that workers didn’t abuse their employee discounts by buying marked-down Chalupas and Nacho Fries to feed friends and family members. But in a recent class-action lawsuit, employees argued that if they were in Taco Bell they were entitled to wages, since they were still technically on-call. However, earlier this month, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals sided with Taco Bell, ---
**Author:** ![Rhiannon8404](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rhiannon8404/32/17929_2.png) [@Rhiannon8404](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rhiannon8404)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2018, 12:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/taco-bell-employees-must-eat-discounted-lunch-in-building/818786/2 "2018-07-30T00:02:49Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > I do find a “discounted” Taco Bell meal kind of funny. My meals at Taco Bell usually cost maybe $5.50. What’s the employee discount? Maybe? $2 😉 be still my heart. The boss is just to generous. LOL Well, $5.50 might be chump change to you, but but it’s a half-hour’s worth of work here. So laugh all you want, but for the kids working for minimum wage there, $2 makes a huge difference from $5.50. As for why they have to eat on site, no idea. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2018, 12:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/taco-bell-employees-must-eat-discounted-lunch-in-building/818786/3 "2018-07-30T00:03:53Z")
The benefit is for employees. It’s no different from providing any other benefit. Only employees can have money put into their Taco Bell 401(k). Only employees are covered by their life insurance. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2018, 12:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/taco-bell-employees-must-eat-discounted-lunch-in-building/818786/4 "2018-07-30T00:10:24Z")
I can’t see how the employee discount could be abused. Unless they were buying $12 meals on discount and sharing the food with friends and family. That’s easily solved by capping the meal price that can be discounted. You can’t buy a dozen discounted tacos. Requiring them to eat the discounted meal at work seems a bit ridiculous. I guess most employees eat at work anyhow. They only get 30 min breaks and you can’t go very far anyhow. ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2018, 12:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/taco-bell-employees-must-eat-discounted-lunch-in-building/818786/5 "2018-07-30T00:21:12Z")
I don’t know how they could eat it after working in it. I volunteer at a concession stand the best I can manage to stomach is bottled water. ---
**Author:** ![harmonicamoon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/65b543/32.png) [@harmonicamoon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/harmonicamoon)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2018, 12:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/taco-bell-employees-must-eat-discounted-lunch-in-building/818786/6 "2018-07-30T00:28:53Z")
> [@Beckdawrek](#): > > I don’t know how they could eat it after working in it. I volunteer at a concession stand the best I can manage to stomach is bottled water. I worked in a fast food joint as a youth. We got free meals. Well, we were taxed on them. The menu got boring. And we tried every type of variation. One day we had pizza delivered. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2018, 12:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/taco-bell-employees-must-eat-discounted-lunch-in-building/818786/7 "2018-07-30T00:38:50Z")
My friends in school told me they got free food at burger places where they worked. I’m sure it doesn’t take long to get tired of it. Taco Bell has some variety. Tacos one day. Eat a burrito the next. ---
**Author:** ![elbows](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/b3f665/32.png) [@elbows](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elbows)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2018, 1:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/taco-bell-employees-must-eat-discounted-lunch-in-building/818786/8 "2018-07-30T01:11:01Z")
If they make a plausible reason for staff to be walking off with product, then people could be robbing you blind, dontcha think? If no one sees what goes in the bag? And they eat it off premise? It’d be too easy for the others to say, ‘He said it was for his sister!’ No Take Aways isn’t uncommon in the industry, for this reason. ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2018, 1:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/taco-bell-employees-must-eat-discounted-lunch-in-building/818786/9 "2018-07-30T01:35:48Z")
FWIW, my daughter worked for a couple of years at Wendy’s here in Ontario, Canada and the same rule applied. ---
**Author:** ![Cell\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/df705f/32.png) [@Cell\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cell_Guy)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2018, 1:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/taco-bell-employees-must-eat-discounted-lunch-in-building/818786/10 "2018-07-30T01:36:46Z")
> [@harmonicamoon](#): > > I worked in a fast food joint as a youth. We got free meals. Well, we were taxed on them. The menu got boring. And we tried every type of variation. > > One day we had pizza delivered. I worked at a well known pizza place in high school. We made every variation of pizza we could think of. After a while it got boring. So one night we had a competitor’s pizza delivered. It was delicious. ---
**Author:** ![harmonicamoon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/65b543/32.png) [@harmonicamoon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/harmonicamoon)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2018, 1:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/taco-bell-employees-must-eat-discounted-lunch-in-building/818786/11 "2018-07-30T01:49:29Z")
> [@Cell\_Guy](#): > > I worked at a well known pizza place in high school. We made every variation of pizza we could think of. After a while it got boring. So one night we had a competitor’s pizza delivered. It was delicious. Was it delivered in an unmarked car? ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2018, 1:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/taco-bell-employees-must-eat-discounted-lunch-in-building/818786/12 "2018-07-30T01:55:45Z")
I think that’s a shitty decision by the 9th circuit; I hope California quickly passes a law to explicitly correct it. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2018, 2:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/taco-bell-employees-must-eat-discounted-lunch-in-building/818786/13 "2018-07-30T02:05:57Z")
> [@](#): > > Quoth **harmonicamoon** : > > One day we had pizza delivered. Once while I was waiting in line at my favorite burrito place, I overheard one of the staff placing a call to some other carry-out place (I think it might have been pizza), suggesting a trade for lunch. And hey, the burrito place provides lunch for six, the pizza place provides lunch for six, why should they care that it’s not the same six that are working there? > [@](#): > > Quoth **Snowboarder Bo** : > > I think that’s a shitty decision by the 9th circuit; I hope California quickly passes a law to explicitly correct it. Was that meant for a different thread? I think we’re talking about a corporate policy, here, not a legal decision. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2018, 2:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/taco-bell-employees-must-eat-discounted-lunch-in-building/818786/14 "2018-07-30T02:28:12Z")
The employees brought a class-action lawsuit against Taco Bell to court. They lost. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2018, 2:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/taco-bell-employees-must-eat-discounted-lunch-in-building/818786/15 "2018-07-30T02:36:46Z")
Ah, I missed that. In that case, I’d say that the Taco Bell policy might well be a stupid policy (I could see more debate on that), but that there’s no law that says that companies aren’t allowed to have stupid policies, and so a court siding with the company would be correct. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2018, 2:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/taco-bell-employees-must-eat-discounted-lunch-in-building/818786/16 "2018-07-30T02:50:34Z")
[Moderating] Oh, and I hadn’t noticed that this thread was in CS. Corporate policies are not an art form. Moving to… hm. It looks like it’s mostly “what do you think about this policy”, so I guess that’d be IMHO. ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2018, 3:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/taco-bell-employees-must-eat-discounted-lunch-in-building/818786/17 "2018-07-30T03:18:06Z")
Since TB is giving a perk, they have the right to limit it. If they didn’t allow employees to bring a brown bag outside I’d be more upset. They probably don’t want the public to see the employees barfing from the discount food anyway. ---
**Author:** ![Cell\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/df705f/32.png) [@Cell\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cell_Guy)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2018, 4:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/taco-bell-employees-must-eat-discounted-lunch-in-building/818786/18 "2018-07-30T04:06:26Z")
> [@harmonicamoon](#): > > Was it delivered in an unmarked car? Nope. They had these custom delivery trucks with warming ovens on the back and their name plastered everywhere. ---
**Author:** ![Rushgeekgirl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rushgeekgirl/32/3715_2.png) [@Rushgeekgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rushgeekgirl)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2018, 4:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/taco-bell-employees-must-eat-discounted-lunch-in-building/818786/19 "2018-07-30T04:27:44Z")
In the 80s when I worked there we got one free meal as long as we ate it on break. We could leave but it was one meal which was I believe at the time something like a taco/burrito, frijoles, and cinnamon crispas with a medium Pepsi product. I got written up once for bringing in a canned drink that wasn’t a Pepsi product. That to me is far more ridiculous than forcing someone to eat their discounted meal in the building. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2018, 4:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/taco-bell-employees-must-eat-discounted-lunch-in-building/818786/20 "2018-07-30T04:44:08Z")
Offering a free meal and letting the employee eat it on break is a reasonable policy. Somehow, discounting an inexpensive meal seems a bit petty. But, TB can do whatever they want. They don’t have to offer any benefit to employees. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/taco-bell-employees-must-eat-discounted-lunch-in-building/818786.md?page=2)