What Are the Meal and Rest Break Requirements for California Employees?

If you work in California, do you know what your rights are regarding meal and rest breaks? Every state has different requirements, and the state of California’s Department of Industrial Relations oversees the California labor board laws, which offer some of the best worker protections in the country, from guaranteeing meal and rest breaks to outlining proper overtime compensation.

When Do I Qualify to Receive Meal and Rest Breaks?

For non-exempt employees (meaning those who have not been exempted from overtime labor laws) if you work more than five hours in a day, you are allowed a 30-minute meal break. If you work no more than a six-hour day, though, you are entitled to waive the meal break if you so wish.

If you are an employee who is working more than 10 hours a day, you are entitled to two 30-minute meal breaks during that time. You are allowed to skip that second 30-minute meal period if you did not skip the first one.

If you are not allowed even the option of a 30-minute meal break when you work more than five hours in a day, you will be entitled to one additional hour of pay at your regular rate of pay for each workday you are not provided such a meal break. However, that additional hour is not used to calculate overtime pay.

What if I am Required to be On Duty During My Meal Break?

California law says an employee must be relieved of all duties during the 30-minute meal period and must also be free to leave the premises of the employer.

If you are required to be on call or on duty during your meal period, such time should be counted as hours worked and you should be paid at your regular rate of pay. Moreover, only certain jobs qualify as positions that allow an employer to require “on duty” lunch breaks, including single-worker coffee kiosks, sole workers at 24-hour convenience stores or a security guard stationed without a backup at a remote location.

How Long of a Day Do I Need to Work to Obtain a Rest Break?

California labor board laws mandate rest breaks of 10 minutes for every four hours, or a major fraction thereof worked in a day. The rest breaks must be considered time worked and are to be paid time. The courts consider more than two hours to be a major fraction of four hours.

Rest periods are not required if you work less than three and a half hours in a day, though.

During rest periods, employees must be relieved of all duties and the employer cannot control how the employees use their rest break time periods.

If I am a Manager in California, Do I Still Receive Meal and Rest Breaks?

California labor board laws covering meal and rest breaks apply to non-exempt employees, which means that white-collar exempt employees do not need to receive the same meal periods and rest breaks.

However, there are guidelines that indicate whether or not you are an exempt or non-exempt employee. To be considered an exempt employee in California, you must spend more than half your time doing managerial, creative or intellectual duties; complete those duties using your own decision-making abilities and judgment; and receive a monthly salary that is at a minimum twice California’s current minimum wage for a full-time employee.

Effective Jan. 1, 2021, the minimum wage in California became $14 per hour at businesses that have more than 25 employees, and $13 an hour for those with 25 or fewer.

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This article is not legal advice. It is presented
for informational purposes only.