What are the requirements for providing rest and meal periods to employees?
Under California law, employees must receive a 15-minute paid rest period for every four hours of work or major fraction thereof (more than two hours). Employees who work at least five hours in a workday must also receive a 30-minute, unpaid meal period. This meal period may be waived by mutual consent if the employee does not work more than six hours. Employees who work 10 hours in a workday must receive an additional 30-minute unpaid meal period. The second meal period may be waived by mutual consent if the employee does not work more than 12 hours. All rest and meal periods must be duty-free (for example, employees cannot answer telephones while on their breaks). Employers who fail to provide required meal periods and rest periods are liable for one hour of pay at the employee’s regular rate for each workday that a meal period and/or rest period was not provided. How can a company avoid wage-and-hour disputes? Maintain accurate and detailed time records for all nonexempt personnel.
