Break and meal period laws in the United States are a patchwork of federal silence and state-specific mandates. The FLSA does not require employers to provide breaks or meal periods at all—but if short breaks (5–20 minutes) are provided, they must be paid. Meanwhile, roughly 20 states require meal breaks, about 10 require rest breaks, and California imposes premium pay penalties for missed breaks that can add up to an extra hour of pay per missed break per day.
For contractors and industrial employers operating across state lines, compliance requires knowing the rules wherever crews are physically working. A Texas-based company with zero break requirements at home may face strict meal break timing rules when running a project in California, and moderate requirements in Washington or Colorado. This guide maps the key requirements, highlights the states with the strictest enforcement, and covers the special provisions for outdoor and heat-exposed workers.
Federal Requirements (Or Lack Thereof)
The Fair Labor Standards Act does not require employers to provide rest breaks, meal breaks, or lunch periods. This surprises many workers and employers alike, but it is unambiguous: federal law is silent on breaks. What the FLSA does say is that if an employer chooses to provide short breaks (typically 5–20 minutes), they are considered compensable work time and must be paid. Longer meal periods (30+ minutes) during which the employee is completely relieved of duties may be unpaid.
The distinction between a paid short break and an unpaid meal period is functional, not just temporal. If a worker is eating lunch but required to remain at their workstation, monitor a radio, or respond to calls, that is not a bona fide meal period—it is compensable work time regardless of duration. The DOL looks at whether the employee is "completely relieved of duties" during the meal period. On construction sites, this means the worker must be free to leave the immediate work area, cannot be required to wear PPE or monitor equipment, and has no obligation to respond to supervisor requests.
The practical impact of federal silence is that 21 states have no meal break requirement for adult workers, and about 30 states have no rest break requirement. In those states, an employer can legally schedule a 10-hour shift with no breaks at all. Whether that is good management practice is another question entirely—productivity, safety, and retention all suffer without adequate breaks, which is why most employers provide them even where not legally required.
Break & Lunch Compliance Checker
Check meal and rest break requirements for all 50 states. Shows required breaks for your shift length, premium pay penalties for violations, and federal FLSA rules.
State Meal Break Requirements
California leads the pack: a 30-minute unpaid meal break must be provided before the end of the 5th hour of work, and a second 30-minute meal break before the end of the 10th hour. The meal period must be duty-free—the employee must be relieved of all duties and free to leave the premises. "On-duty" meal periods are permitted only when the nature of the work prevents relief (rare in construction) and must be in a written agreement. Failure to provide a compliant meal period triggers one hour of premium pay at the employee's regular rate.
Other notable states: Colorado requires a 30-minute meal break within 5 hours (can be unpaid if duty-free). Connecticut requires a 30-minute meal break for shifts of 7.5+ hours, within the first 7.5 hours. Illinois requires a 20-minute meal break no later than 5 hours into the shift for shifts of 7.5+ hours. Massachusetts requires a 30-minute meal break for shifts over 6 hours. New York requires a 30-minute midday meal for shifts covering the 11 AM–2 PM period, with additional meal breaks for shifts covering other standard meal periods. Oregon requires a 30-minute meal break for shifts of 6+ hours and a second meal break for shifts of 14+ hours. Washington requires a 30-minute meal break no less than 2 hours and no more than 5 hours into the shift.
States with no meal break requirement for adult workers include Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, New Jersey (manufacturing employees excepted), North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Virginia, and Wyoming. In these states, employers may voluntarily provide meal breaks but have no statutory obligation to do so for workers over 18.
Rest Break Laws
Fewer states mandate rest breaks than meal breaks. California requires a paid 10-minute rest break for every 4 hours worked (or major fraction thereof), to be taken near the middle of the work period when practicable. An 8-hour shift gets two 10-minute rest breaks. A 10-hour shift gets three. Failure to provide rest breaks triggers one hour of premium pay per missed break, independent of any meal break premium. The combined premium exposure for a worker denied both rest breaks and a meal break on a 10-hour shift is 3 hours of premium pay.
Colorado requires a paid 10-minute rest break for every 4 hours worked. Washington requires a paid 10-minute rest break for every 4 hours worked, to be taken no later than the end of the 3rd hour. Oregon requires a paid 10-minute rest break for every 4 hours of work, taken approximately in the middle of the work segment. Minnesota requires adequate time to use the restroom within each 4-hour work period (not a defined rest break, but functionally similar). Nevada requires a paid 10-minute rest break for every 3.5 hours worked.
In states without rest break mandates, OSHA's sanitation standard (29 CFR 1926.51 for construction, 29 CFR 1910.141 for general industry) requires that toilet facilities be available and that employers allow workers to use them. This is not a "rest break" per se, but it establishes a baseline that employers cannot deny restroom access. OSHA has cited employers who restricted restroom use under the general duty clause, particularly in agriculture and warehouse operations.
Heat and Outdoor Break Requirements
Several states have enacted heat-specific break requirements that go beyond standard meal and rest break laws. California (Cal/OSHA Heat Illness Prevention Standard) requires that outdoor workers have access to shade and water at all times, with mandatory cool-down rest periods when temperatures exceed 95 °F. Employees must be allowed and encouraged to take a cool-down rest in the shade for at least 5 minutes whenever they feel the need. At or above 95 °F, pre-shift meetings must address high-heat procedures, and supervisors must monitor for heat illness symptoms.
Washington (WAC 296-62-095) requires employers to provide shade, water, and acclimatization procedures when temperatures reach 89 °F for non-agricultural workers. Mandatory cool-down periods of at least 10 minutes every 2 hours are required when temperatures exceed 100 °F. Oregon adopted emergency heat rules requiring shade, cool water, and 10-minute paid cool-down periods in the shade every 2 hours when the heat index reaches 90 °F. Colorado requires 10-minute paid rest breaks every 4 hours under its general rest break law, with additional protections for agricultural workers in high heat.
At the federal level, OSHA has used the general duty clause to cite employers for heat-related hazards, particularly when workers suffer heat illness on a day when temperatures exceeded 90 °F and the employer did not provide water, shade, or rest breaks. OSHA's National Emphasis Program on heat has increased inspections and enforcement. A federal heat-specific standard has been proposed but not yet finalized as of 2025. Regardless of jurisdiction, providing water, shade, rest breaks, and an acclimatization plan for new and returning workers in hot conditions is both a legal best practice and a moral imperative.
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Assess shift fatigue risk using Folkard-Lombardi scoring with checks against API RP 755, NRC, FMCSA, and EU Working Time standards. Includes BAC-equivalent impairment reference.