Employers must comply with various laws governing rest breaks and meal periods. To help you understand these obligations, we address some common misconceptions about these rules below, busting the myths and explaining the facts of each.
Myth #1: Federal law requires rest breaks and meal periods.
Fact: Federal law generally does not require private employers to provide rest periods or meal periods. However, many states have laws that do. Some of these state laws cover all employees but other laws are industry-specific or are limited to non-exempt employees or minors. Local jurisdictions may also have their own rules. Check your state and local law and understand the rules that apply to your employees.
Myth #2: Under federal law, meal periods can always be unpaid.
Fact: Under federal law, there are rules pertaining to pay when meal periods are provided (whether voluntarily or as a result of a state or local requirement). For a meal period to be unpaid under the FLSA, the two following requirements must be met:
- The meal period must generally be at least 30 minutes without interruption; and
- The employee must be fully relieved of all duties for the purpose of eating a regular meal.
Check your state and local law for additional guidance on meal period requirements.
Myth #3: Employees who are classified as exempt from overtime are never entitled to rest breaks.
Fact: It depends on the law. For example, in Kentucky, the rest break (and meal period) requirements should be interpreted to apply to employees classified as exempt from overtime.
By contrast, in Colorado, bona fide overtime-exempt employees are excluded from the Colorado Overtime and Minimum Pay Standards (COMPS) Order, which sets the rest break (and meal period) requirements.
Check your state and local law to ensure compliance.
Myth #4: If you require employees to eat their lunch at their desk in case a call comes in, you only have to pay employees for the meal period if they actually handle any calls.
Fact: If you require employees to do work, whether active or inactive, while they are eating their lunch, they aren't completely relieved of duty, and they must be paid for that entire time.
Myth #5: Employers don’t have to pay non-exempt employees for rest breaks.
Fact: Under federal law, rest breaks of a short duration must generally be considered paid working time.
The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) defines a rest break as any period lasting 20 minutes or less that the employee is allowed to spend away from work.
The duration of the break is generally the sole factor used when determining whether pay is required, not the reason for the break (such as for a cigarette, coffee, snack, or to make a personal phone call).
Myth #6: To help prevent employees from returning late from lunch, employers can always require employees to remain on premises during unpaid meal periods.
Fact: Under certain state laws, requiring employees to stay on premises may affect whether the meal period must be paid. Check your state law to ensure compliance.
Myth #7: State-mandated rest breaks don’t apply to employees who work remotely.
Fact: When rest breaks are required, they're typically required regardless of whether the employee works at the traditional worksite or remotely. Therefore, ensure that employees working remotely are provided rest breaks in accordance with applicable law.
Myth #8: It's a best practice to automatically deduct lunch periods from employees' hours.
Fact: It's a best practice to require employees to clock out and then back in for their meal periods. This can help ensure that employees are paid for missed lunch breaks and account for times when employees return from lunch late. Time records should accurately reflect that the employee took a meal period, how long the meal period lasted, and the actual hours worked. In addition, some states prohibit automatic deductions for meal periods. Check your state law to ensure compliance.
Myth #9: Employers can always require employees to remain on premises during rest breaks.
Fact: Depending on the state, forcing employees to remain on the premises during rest breaks may be considered a violation of state requirements. However, employers may discipline employees for unauthorized extensions of rest breaks in accordance with their company policy beyond the statutory requirement. This can be enough of an incentive for employees to return from breaks on time, regardless of whether they leave the premises.
Myth #10: If you give exempt employees a one-hour meal period, but they take a longer break without authorization, you can deduct the extended lunch from their salary.
Fact: As mentioned earlier, the FLSA permits deductions from an exempt employee's salary only in very limited circumstances, and this is not one of them. In this case, the exempt employee must still receive their full salary. However, you can subject the employee to disciplinary action for taking an unauthorized extension.
Conclusion
Make sure your company is complying with federal, state and local laws governing rest breaks and meal periods.
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