Break Compliance for 24-hour Shifts in Home Healthcare: A Practical Guide
Emily Maina
Last update on:
February 18, 2025 9:21 AM
Published on:
In California, home healthcare providers who work 24-hour shifts are entitled to meal and rest breaks to protect them from burnout and ensure their well-being.
However, due to staffing shortages, employee resistance, and record-keeping issues, enforcing break compliance during 24-hour shifts can be quite difficult in the home health industry.
Business owners must navigate these difficulties to ensure non-exempt employees in particular receive their mandated meal and rest breaks. If found guilty of violating break laws, employers are responsible for compensating employees for missed breaks.
Tracking breaks and ensuring compliance shouldn’t be a hassle.
See how Timeero simplifies compliance tracking for home healthcare.
California break law requirements for 24-hour shifts
Under California law, employers must provide non-exempt employees with meal and rest breaks.
Regarding breaks, the following guidelines apply:
Employees who work more than 5 hours in a shift are given one 30-minute uninterrupted meal break.
Employees who work over 12 hours in a shift are given a second unpaid 30-minute meal break.
For every 4 hours an employee works, one 10-minute rest break should be given.
Be sure to check out our resources for additional guidance on California break law and California labor law, to better understand what is expected of you as an employer in these situations.
Challenges in break compliance
For home healthcare agencies, frequent obstacles arise that prevent staff from adhering to break laws during 24-hour shifts.
Staffing constraints
Providing sufficient coverage to patients while staff members rotate taking their breaks, is one of the biggest issues in home healthcare.
To address this issue, employers can hire additional part-time staff specifically for break coverage. Alternatively, implementing strategic shift rotations or staggered schedules can help ensure continuous patient care while allowing employees to take their breaks.
Employee reluctance
Some healthcare providers may be hesitant to take breaks due to a strong sense of responsibility or worry for their patients' well-being.
Employers should strive to promote a culture that values workers' health and stresses the value of taking breaks. Frequent training sessions and unambiguous information regarding break regulations might assist staff in realizing that taking breaks is not only their right but also a necessary part of providing high-quality patient care.
Record-keeping
To remain compliant with break regulations, California meal and rest breaks must be accurately recorded. Using digital time-tracking tools can help you lower the chances of inaccurate reporting and reduce the potential for non-compliance.
The best home care apps simplify record-keeping and allow employers to easily monitor compliance and resolve any timekeeping inconsistencies.
On-duty meal periods
Because of the nature of their work, caregivers may not always be able to take a complete 30-minute rest break. California law permits on-duty lunch breaks in home healthcare, but only if both the employer and the employee have a documented agreement in place.
All on-duty lunch period agreements should be properly documented and signed by all parties involved, according to employers.
Overtime work
Caregivers who work overtime are typically eligible for additional breaks, which might make scheduling more difficult. Employers can monitor overtime hours and modify break times through the use of workforce management systems.
Flexible work arrangements
Monitoring break compliance has grown more difficult as remote work and flexible scheduling have become increasingly common. Because home healthcare providers may have different schedules, it might be challenging to regularly enforce break restrictions.
Employers should establish clear policies for break compliance in flexible work arrangements. Leveraging technology, such as GPS-enabled time-tracking apps, can help directors monitor breaks even in non-traditional work settings.
Lack of awareness
Workers may not be completely aware of their rights and obligations regarding breaks, which could result in inadvertent non-compliance. Regular training sessions and easily available materials, such as online modules or employee handbooks, can assist in guaranteeing that staff members are aware of their rights.
Timeero: A solution for California break compliance
Advanced break tracking with Timeero's California breaks tracker
The app's time tracking software offers users a unique benefit – Timeero's California breaks tracker.
The California breaks tracker makes it possible for California employers to easily monitor employee breaks.
Caregivers using the breaks tracker can:
Record their rest and meal breaks
Confirm breaks were taken by completing daily sign-off forms
Apply your company's break policy to relevant employees
Before employers can use the breaks tracker, they need to enable the California Break Policy rule and select the relevant employees to whom the policy applies.
When the specified caregivers clock out, Timeero will automatically prompt them to complete a break attestation form. This form is a requirement for employees to confirm whether or not they took their breaks as required.
Every signed attestation form guarantees compliance.
Stay on top of breaks with alerts and reminders
Timeero notifies employers when there is an instance of non-compliance on an employee's break attestation form so they can quickly follow up.
The app also sends out notifications to caregivers reminding them to take their scheduled breaks. Employers can customize these alerts to go out to employees at specific times of the day.
An automated break reminder from Timeero.
Track down to the minute by preventing time rounding
Timeero allows business owners to deactivate time rounding in company settings. This way, employee timesheets will accurately reflect the exact length of breaks taken.
Gain valuable insight through custom reports
Timeero allows you to generate a variety of customized reports.
Break reports can be filtered by date range, and show the start and end times of breaks as well as break totals.
‘Daily Sign-Off Reports' can help employers identify repeated instances of noncompliance and take the necessary measures to address them.
Easily generate custom break reports.
Use Timeero to simplify break compliance in California
Managing break compliance for 24-hour shifts in home healthcare is a difficult but necessary responsibility for employers.
Implementing time-tracking software like Timeero, can help your caregiving team remain compliant with California break laws. Coupled with a culture that values employee well-being, and recruiting more personnel to cover breaks, Timeero successfully simplifies break tracking in the healthcare sector. Sign up for a free trial today to see how Timeero can benefit your business.
Effortless compliance for home healthcare providers
Discover how Timeero helps home healthcare teams stay on track.
Emily Maina is a tech-savvy writer with a passion for creating content. With years of experience in the industry, she is well-versed in the latest trends and developments in the tech industry. When she’s not working, Emily enjoys exploring the great outdoors or watching her favorite shows.
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