| Policy | Meal Period |
| Department | General Human Resources |
| Last Updated | Apr 2026 |
Policy
Meal Breaks
Hourly employees working more than 5 hours in a workday are provided a 30-minute, unpaid, and duty-free meal period. This break must begin before the end of the 5th hour of work.
If an employee works more than 10 hours in a workday, they are entitled to a second 30-minute, duty-free meal period, which must begin before the end of the 10th hour of work.
Rest Breaks
Hourly employees are provided a 10-minute, paid rest break for every 4 hours worked, or major fraction thereof (meaning any shift over 2 hours). To the extent possible, these breaks should be taken in the middle of each work period.
Rest breaks cannot be combined with meal periods, nor can they be used to start work late or leave early to shorten the workday. If you are ever prevented from taking your rest break, please notify HR immediately to ensure you receive the required rest period premium (one additional hour of pay).
Procedure
Meal Breaks
Relieved of all duties
We want to make sure you’re fully relieved of all work duties during your meal periods so you can use that time however you’d like. To make this happen, we schedule work specifically so everyone can and should take their full breaks.
To keep our records accurate, we may ask for written confirmation each pay period to verify you received all your breaks. You must clock out and in for your 30-minute meal period. We strictly prohibit working off-the-clock or any manipulation of time records to hide missed or worked breaks.
No manager or supervisor has the authority to tell you what to do during your meal period. If a manager or supervisor ever instructs you to skip a break or work through it especially without a signed waiver or on-duty agreement please notify Human Resources immediately.
Waiver of meal period
If your workday is 6 hours or less, you have the option to skip your meal period. For longer shifts of more than 10 hours, you can waive your second meal break as long as you took your first one and your total shift is under 12 hours.
To make this official, sign a Meal Period Waiver form and provide your signed copy to your manager.
6 hr MEAL PERIOD WAIVER - All properties.pdf
On-duty meal period
For certain roles—like Front Desk and Night Audit—the nature of the job might prevent you from being fully relieved of all duties. In these cases, you may be authorized for an "on-duty meal period."
Since you'll remain available to work, this time is fully paid and counts toward your total hours. Please note that this is an option, not a requirement; if your position qualifies and you choose to work through your break, just complete and sign an On-Duty Meal Period form and submit it to your manager.
AGREEMENT FOR ON-DUTY MEAL PERIODS (1).pdf
Rest Breaks
Rest breaks counted as hours worked
Rest breaks will be provided as follows:
Shift (Hours Worked in a Day) |
Number of Paid Rest Breaks |
| At least 3.5 but less than 6 hours | 1 |
| At least 6 but less than 10 hours | 2 |
| At least 10 but less than 14 hours | 3 |