California employees may have important rights when it comes to meal and rest breaks during the workday. Employers covered by California wage-and-hour laws generally must provide required breaks based on the employee’s hours worked and the applicable industry rules.
If your employer is denying required meal or rest breaks, an employment lawyer can help you understand your rights and determine whether your employer may have violated California law.
Bona Fide Meal Break
It is important to note that some states do require that employers allow their employees to take short rest or meal breaks. When rest breaks are required by law, they are usually limited to about ten minutes and only given when an employee is scheduled to work a certain number of hours in his or her shift.
California is one state that requires employers to give their workers a meal break in certain cases. In California, employees must be given at least one half-hour meal break after working for six hours straight. The laws are a little different in other states, though. Colorado allows employees to take a meal break after only five hours of work, while Delaware only gives employees a meal break after nearly eight hours of work. Because the law varies so much between states, it may be helpful to speak with a local attorney to determine what rights you have when it comes to rest and meal breaks.
