§PlainStatute

Work & Pay · Meal & Rest Breaks

Meal and Rest Break Laws by State

Whether your employer has to give you a meal break, and separately a rest break, for each state. Two different questions, answered honestly, cited to the statute.

6 of 50 states published. 6 verified against the official statute or state labor department.The answers split: 1 require both a meal and a rest break, 2 require a meal only, and 3 require neither for adults.

Read this first: meal and rest are two questions

There is no single break law. A state can require a meal break, a rest break, both, or neither, so we answer each separately. The starting point is federal: the Fair Labor Standards Act requires no breaks at all. It only says that if an employer gives a short break, it must be paid. Everything beyond that is state law.

A handful of states go further. California requires both a meal and a paid rest break and adds an hour of premium pay for a missed one. New York and Illinois require a meal break but not a rest break. Many states, including several here, require neither for adults, though minors often still get a break. We show a plain not-required rather than inventing a rule that does not exist.

Pick your state

Meal and rest shown separately, with the authority, on each card.

C

CA
California
Meal + rest required
Meal + rest required
Meal breakRequired
Rest breakRequired
Authority§512, §226.7

F

FL
Florida
No adult breaks required
No adult breaks required
Meal breakNot required
Rest breakNot required
Authority§450.081

I

IL
Illinois
Meal required, rest not
Meal required
Meal breakRequired
Rest breakNot required
Authority820 ILCS 140/3

N

NY
New York
Meal required, rest not
Meal required
Meal breakRequired
Rest breakNot required
Authority§162

P

PA
Pennsylvania
No adult breaks required
No adult breaks required
Meal breakNot required
Rest breakNot required
AuthorityPA Child Labor Act

T

TX
Texas
No breaks required
No adult breaks required
Meal breakNot required
Rest breakNot required
AuthorityNo Texas meal or rest break …

What these pages are, and what they aren't

Each state page is a reference for whether a meal or rest break is required and what to do about a missed one. They are deliberately not advice for your job: union contracts and company policy can add rights, so each page links to the statute or labor department. This is legal information, not legal advice.