Don’t break so fast—Are there any exceptions to break time requirements?

Q       Are there any exceptions to meal and rest break requirements, and are there meal penalties for not allowing staff to take proper breaks? Can we allow employees to waive their meal breaks if they work six hours instead of eight?

Mississippi doesn’t have a meal or rest break law mandating or setting requirements for meal or rest break periods. The Fair Labor Standards Act also doesn’t mandate meal or rest breaks, but it does require employers to provide unpaid break time and space for nursing mothers to express breast milk for up to one year after the child’s birth. 

If an employer voluntarily provides paid breaks, an employee who uses that break time to express breast milk must be compensated the same way other employees are compensated for break time. Also, although not required, the Department of Labor indicates that short break periods, like those 20 minutes or less, must usually be paid breaks. But, when an employer voluntarily provides a meal break (typically 30 minutes or more), it doesn’t have to be compensated as long as employees are completely relieved of duty.