California Meal & Rest Break Rules: An Employer's Guide

A non-exempt employee is entitled to an unpaid, duty-free 30-minute meal period before the end of the fifth hour of work, and a second 30-minute meal before the end of the tenth hour (Labor Code §512).

• The first meal can be waived by mutual consent only if the shift is no more than 6 hours.
• The second can be waived if the shift is no more than 12 hours and the first meal wasn't waived.
• Meals must be duty-free — the employee is relieved of all duties and free to leave. On-duty meal periods are allowed only in narrow circumstances and require a written, revocable agreement.

Employees get a paid, duty-free 10-minute restfor every 4 hours worked “or major fraction thereof,” placed in the middle of each work period as far as practical (Labor Code §226.7 and the applicable IWC Wage Order). No rest period is required for shifts under 3.5 hours; you cannot combine rest periods with meal periods or use them to come in late or leave early.

If a compliant meal or rest period isn't provided, the employee is owed one extra hour of payfor that workday — one premium for meal violations and a separate one for rest violations (Labor Code §226.7). Critically, that premium is paid at the employee's regular rate of pay (which folds in nondiscretionary bonuses and commissions), not just the base hourly rate.

• Auto-deducting a 30-minute meal that the employee didn't actually take.
• Providing the first meal after the fifth hour.
• Letting work (phones, customers) interrupt a meal so it isn't truly duty-free.
• Not paying the premium — or paying it at base rate instead of the regular rate.
• Time-rounding practices that systematically shorten breaks.

Document break policies clearly, train supervisors, and keep accurate time records — accurate records are your best defense if a claim arises.