Meal and Rest Break Requirements

This is nothing new but the lawsuits that are rising. Missed meal and rest break compliance continues to be the source of a great deal of litigation for California employers. More than ever, it is important to take a moment to make sure you are in compliance.

Here is a quick review on Meal Breaks

• A company in California cannot employ someone for a work period of more than five hours without providing an unpaid, off-duty meal period of at least 30 minutes. The first meal period must be provided no later than the end of the employee's fifth hour of work.
• Employees must be provided reasonable opportunity to take an uninterrupted, unpaid 30-minute break.
• Employees must be relieved of all duty.
• Employers must relinquish control over the employee’s activities.
• Employers may not impede or discourage employees from taking meal break.

Note: When a work period of no more than six hours will complete the day's work, the meal period may be waived by mutual consent of the employer and the employee.

Missed Meal Break
For each workday that an employer fails to provide an employee a meal break as required, the employee is owed one additional hour of pay at the employee's regular rate of pay. The additional hour of pay is a wage owed to the employee.

Here is a quick review on Rest Breaks

• Employers must authorize and permit uninterrupted rest breaks for all nonexempt employees whose total daily work time is at least 3.5 hours. These mandatory rest breaks must be offered at the rate of 10 minutes for every four hours worked, or "major fraction" thereof.
• The rest break should be in the middle of each four-hour work period. In an eight-hour day, one rest break normally falls on either side of the meal break. Though this is a general rule.
• Employers must relieve employees of all duties during rest breaks and relinquish any control over how employees spend their break time.
• Employees are free to leave the property during their rest break.
• Rest Breaks are paid but an employer can have the employee document the break.

Missed Rest Break
If either rest break is not given or is interrupted, you owe the employee one hour of pay at the regular rate of pay, which you must include in the next paycheck.

Meal and rest break premiums must be paid using the employee’s regular rate of pay, which is the same rate used for overtime pay. The regular rate of pay may be more than an employee’s hourly rate. The rate must be calculated to include all compensation received during the workweek, such as the base hourly wages, commissions and nondiscretionary bonuses.

Employees have up to three years to file a claim for unpaid wages.

Employers that do not have a system in place for tracking these breaks, should schedule an appointment with Infinium to discuss possible solutions. We have many automated timekeeping solutions which can save you time and money! Contact the HR pros at Infinium for a consultation at info@infiniumgroup.com.