Human Resource Blog

Maryland Break Law

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In Maryland, are employers required to give breaks under any state or federal law? Does it matter how old the employee is, or if it’s in the fast food industry?

No. There are very few states that regulate break times for employees. Maryland, Texas, Florida, Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Georgia, North Carolina, Utah, and many others have no laws. Employers can make employees work all day without any breaks, even when the work day is 16 or more hours. No meal break, short rest break, or smoking break is required.

Most employers, including many of the fast-food franchises, give their workers breaks. They have learned that research demonstrates workers are more productive if they receive breaks. So a typical solution is a half-hour meal break and two 15 minute rest breaks during an 8 hour shift.

Workers under 18 are covered by state child labor law. There are many states where meal breaks are legally required for those under 18. Almost all require a meal break for those under 16.

Meal break laws differ from one state to another. In Maine, California, and Colorado, for example, any adult employee working a shift of 6 or more hours must get a 30-minute meal break. In Delaware and Connecticut, on the other hand, a shift must be 7.5 hours before the regulations kick in.

In Illinois, the break law applies only to a certain segment of workers, specifically, hotel room attendants in Chicago. Employees are over 18 and in any other job or part of the state, are not entitled to breaks. According to the law, the attendants must get two 15-minute paid breaks and a single half-hour meal break during a shift of 7 or more hours.

There are several states with specific laws about rest breaks. California, Colorado, Oregon, Nevada and Washington all mandate that a worker get a 10-minute break during each work period of 4 hours. The law requires that it be as close to the middle of that period as possible. In Minnesota, on the other hand, the law only requires a “reasonable break” to use the nearest toilet and only once during a 4-hour shift. JH