On-Duty Meal Periods: When Your ‘Lunch Break’ Is Actually Compensable Work Time

Some employers require workers to remain ‘on duty’ during meal periods — available to respond to customer needs, monitor equipment, or handle emergencies. These on-duty meal periods must be paid — and the employer must have a written on-duty meal period agreement.

The Requirements

An on-duty meal period is only lawful if: the nature of the work prevents the employee from being relieved, the employer and employee have a written agreement providing for the on-duty meal period, and the agreement allows the employee to revoke it in writing at any time with reasonable notice.

An on-duty meal period without a written agreement is a wage violation. Employers who keep workers on duty during meal periods without a valid written agreement owe the one-hour premium for each on-duty meal period. Workers who have been eating at their desks, answering phones during lunch, or otherwise remaining available without a proper agreement have a meal period claim.

The California Wage Theft Recovery System gives workers the exact tools and templates to document violations, calculate what they’re owed, and file the right claims. Request your free evaluation here.