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Required Break Periods - Employment Laws
Working as an employee of a corporation these days can be a difficult job to do but there are laws across the country that require employers to provide their employees with a certain period of break time depending on how long the worker is on the clock. A break period is defined as a period of time where the employee is allowed to take time off from his or her job during the workday. Depending on the length of the break and the policies outlined by the employer, the break might be paid to the worker. There are some states, not all of them, that legally require employers to provide their employees with break periods during the workday. There are a variety of different break periods such as meal breaks, bathroom breaks, snack breaks, and smoking breaks. These breaks are important as to not cause any workplace health issues. Here is a table which shows employment law breaks by state.
Required Breaks
| State | Required Break Time |
| California | 10 minute break for every four hours worked |
| Colorado | 10 minutes for every four hours worked |
| Kentucky | 10 minutes for every four hours worked |
| Minnesota | Reasonable amount of time in four hours worked |
| Nevada | 10 minutes for every four hours worked |
| Oregon | 10 minutes for every four hours worked |
| Washington | 10 minutes for every four hours worked |
Required Meal Periods
| State | Required Meal Time |
| California | 30 minutes for six hour workday |
| Colorado | 30 minutes for five hour workday |
| Connecticut | 30 minutes for 7.5 hour workday |
| Delaware | 30 minutes for 7.5 hour workday |
| Hawaii | 45 minutes only for government employees |
| Illinois | 20 minutes for 7.5 hour workday |
| Kentucky | Reasonable amount of time for meal breaks |
| Maine | 30 minutes for six hour workday |
| Massachusetts | 30 minutes for six hour workday |
| Minnesota | Sufficient time for eight hours worked |
| Nebraska | 30 minutes between Noon and 1pm |
| Nevada | 30 minutes for eight hour workday |
| New Hampshire | 30 minutes for five hour workday |
| New Mexico | 30 minutes |
| New York | 30 minutes for six hour workday |
| North Dakota | 30 minutes for five hour workday |
| Oregon | 30 minutes for six to eight hour workday |
| Tennessee | 30 minutes for six hour workday |
| Washington | 30 minutes for five hour workday |
| West Virginia | 20 minutes |
| Wisconsin | 30 minutes for six hour workday |
| Wyoming | 60 minutes for employees working on their feet |
Legal Help
A required break period lawyer will be able to assist workers seeking to file a lawsuit against their employer for not honoring required break periods during the workday. Employees must receive at least one day off during a seven-day workweek in the states of California, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, New York, North Dakota and Rhode Island. Ohio work health policies do not consider mandatory breaks.