Retailer Forever 21 is being sued by 5 employees of the company who allege that their employer made them work through lunch breaks, and made them stay back after they had clocked out to to get their bags checked for stolen property.

The 5 plaintiffs are seeking damages for the hours that they worked during their lunch break, as well as the time that they were made to stay back after they clocked out, for bag searches. According to the plaintiffs, they were routinely made to queue up after they clocked out in order to get their bags searched for stolen merchandise, and were not paid for this additional period of time.

Attorneys representing these plaintiffs say that this practice is widespread across the Forever 21 chain. Forever 21 has also confirmed that it has a policy that requires employees to submit to a bag check before clocking out. Some of the plaintiffs represented in the lawsuit say that they have worked in more than one Forever 21 outlet, and found the same practice of being asked to stay back after they had clocked out, prevalent in all these outlets. The lawsuit has been filed in the San Francisco Superior Court.

To the general public, it may seem like going through a bag search takes just a few seconds of your time. However, California employment lawyers know differently. Bag searches can take time, especially at a retailer with dozens of employees or even more. Additionally, the practice of making employees work at a retail store even during lunch hours is fairly common, even though it is undeniably cruel. It is likely that this lawsuit will be settled out of court.