Human Resource Blog

Unpaid breaks

	Compensation
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1) Can my employer require me to respond to situations that occur at work or require me to stay in the facility during an unpaid break?

2) Can my employer consider that an hour unpaid break begins for everyone when relieved of duty regardless of the distance from going off grounds? For instance some have no walk at all to go off grounds and others have 10-15 minute walk to go off grounds. Therefore, some employees are only getting a 35-40 minute break and others a full hour. If not, could you give me the state statute. By the way, my state of employment is Minnesota.

1) Yes, under federal law, the employer may legitimately require that employees remain on the premises during unpaid breaks. Working during unpaid breaks is more problematic. An employee must be relieved of all duties in order for a meal break to be unpaid. Usually that means being away from the workstation, but not always. However, if the employee must be available for work during the break, then the entire break must be paid.

 

Suppose Sharon is an admin in a large office who also answers the switchboard. If Sharon eats her sandwich at her desk while taking calls between bites, then she must be paid for her “meal break.” Even if the phone doesn’t ring during the half hour or hour that Sharon is eating, the employer must pay her for being available to work. 

Now suppose that while Sharon eats at her desk, Tricia takes over the switchboard duties. If the phone rings during Sharon’s break, Tricia will answer it. Under those circumstances, Sharon has been relieved of duties and the break can be unpaid. 

2) The unpaid break starts when the employee is relieved, not when the employee arrives at his or her preferred break spot. The employer doesn’t have to pay for the employee’s “travel time” to the break spot of the employee’s choice.

Suppose John and Mary are relieved at noon for a 1-hour break. John chooses to have lunch at a restaurant two hours away. John arrives at the restaurant at 2 pm and leaves it at 3 pm, returning to work at 5 pm. Meanwhile, Mary takes a 1-hour lunch in the employee break room and is back at her desk at 1 pm, where she works until 5 pm.

Under your interpretation, both John and Mary have worked 4 hours that afternoon. Sorry, but it doesn’t work that way.

Here’s another way to think of it: the employer must pay for the time you are at your workstation, working. In most cases, where you spend your break has nothing to do with the length of your break.

If the nearest restaurant is 2 hours away, John needs to bring his lunch. He is relieved for his one-hour break at 12:00. If he doesn’t return by 1:01 pm the employer can legitimately discipline or terminate him for tardiness.