Can we require seven straight days of work in California?

Q. Tax season is very busy at our accounting firm. Can I schedule employees to work every day of the week during the spring?

A. California Labor Code Section 551 requires that em­­ployees have one day of rest in seven days. The law says “no employer of labor shall cause his employees to work more than six days in seven.”

However, there are several exceptions, including one for emergencies. It also allows seven consecutive days of work if “the nature of the employment reasonably requires that the employee work seven or more consecutive days, if in each calendar month the employee receives days of rest equivalent to one day’s rest in seven.”