Why Lunch Laws Matter

Everyone needs and deserves a break during their workday. In recent years the debates on this subject have created state and federal laws that affect both employers and employees. New break and lunch laws are becoming a common occurrence in the United States. It can be difficult to stay up-to-date on these laws and ensure your business remains compliant with labor laws regarding employee meal breaks.
 
What are Lunch Laws
Twenty-one states and two U.S. territories currently have regulations concerning employee rest and meal breaks. Private sector state laws affect the minimum length of meal periods and the maximum time worked before breaks must be taken by your workers.
 
These lunch laws are enacted at the state rather than federal level in the United States. Therefore, companies with employees in multiple states must consider each state's labor laws as they apply to their employees. To learn more about state lunch rules and how they may apply to you view our State Laws for Lunch & Meal Breaks or refer to the U.S. Department of Labor Wage and Hour Division for further information.
 
Lunch Laws and Virtual TimeClock
To help busy business owners and managers with meal break compliance, we introduced new lunch rules in Virtual TimeClock 16. These new shift rules make it easier to manage worker lunches and help ensure compliance with state lunch rules. The new lunch rules work just like our popular Start and Stop shift rules that enforce policies real-time as your employees use the TimeClock.

California employers have been particularly interested in the new lunch rules that ensure meal breaks are taken within a designated period of time and for a designated length. Learn more about using lunch rules in Virtual TimeClock 16 here.