Lunch and Break Law Requirements in Vermont

I find that the laws regarding the lunches and breaks employees may take is a subject of great interest to many people. My research shows that Vermont is one of a number of states with a specific law that covers this topic.

Vermont state law mandates that “a reasonable opportunity” to eat a meal must be provided to all employees. This meal break may be unpaid if it is at least 30 minutes long, but only if the employee is completely relieved of his or her duties. If the worker must do any job duties during the meal break, it would not qualify as an unpaid meal break.

Vermont law does not provide specifically for any other rest breaks. However, if employers do choose to offer them, they must be paid if they are under 30 minutes long.

There are some interesting work hour issues found in federal law related to sleep time, waiting time, and travel time that Vermont residents may want to be informed about.

Whether or not waiting time needs to be considered paid work hours depends on the circumstances. If an employee is allowed to do something of personal choosing while waiting for another task to be finished or while waiting at the workplace for his or her services to be called upon, it is generally considered work time. Alternately, if an employee is waiting to be called upon, but has great freedom to do what he or she wishes while on call (and has plenty of time to respond to the call), it is not generally considered paid work time.

Sleeping time is an issue that often arises in jobs where very long shifts are required. An employee required to be on duty less than 24 hours is considered to be “working” even if he or she is allowed to sleep during some of those hours when not busy. If an employee is on duty more than 24 hours, a sleeping period of no more than eight hours may be deducted from work hours. However, this can only be done if sleeping quarters are provided and at least five hours of uninterrupted sleep may be achieved by the employee.

Finally, we can consider the issue of travel time. The usual rule is that time spent in the normal day’s commute to and from work is not considered paid working time. However, if an employee is traveling in the course of a days work, it must be considered paid work time.

A thorough presentation of state and federal laws related to lunches and breaks may be found on the Vermont All in One Labor Law Poster. This poster also presents required notices for all areas of both state and federal labor laws.