Colorado Break Laws: A Comprehensive Guide for Employers
When it comes to meal and rest break laws, Colorado is one of the most employee friendly states in the US. Since Federal law does not require employers to provide meal or rest breaks, each state determines their own regulations.
When compared with other states, like Florida, Colorado’s break laws are far more generous. If you own a business in Colorado, staying compliant with legal regulations requires you to understand state labor laws and employee rights.
To assist you in learning about Colorado’s break laws, we have compiled a comprehensive guide that explains in detail the ins and outs of meal and rest break laws for employers.
What are Colorado’s break laws?
Colorado’s labor laws require employers to grant workers paid rest and "bona fide" meal break periods during their workday.
These regulations apply to employees and employers covered by the Colorado Overtime and Minimum Pay Standards Order, also known as "COMPS Order #38." These rules also apply to minor employees.
PRO TIP: COMPS Order #38 applies to all employees in Colorado that work in the state’s public sector as well as private employers, unless outlined explicitly as exempt by the Order, such as certain administrative and professional employees, salaried executives or supervisors, and outside salespersons , etc. You can learn more about these exemptions in Rule 2. of this document.
According to the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment, employers must provide time for scheduled meal and rest breaks, keep daily records of an employee’s work hours, and issue employee pay statements that include total hours worked in the pay period.
It is a good practice for employers to keep detailed records of all work hours, to verify compliance with FLSA and Colorado’s labor laws. In the event an audit was to be performed, detailed time records can prove beneficial and prevent costly legal disputes.
A reliable time-tracking tool, such as Timeero, benefits Colorado employers and employees in various ways.
Besides keeping track of employee work hours and overtime, Timeero gives you the tools to easily and accurately track breaks.
Meal breaks in Colorado
Colorado’s lunch break laws require employers to provide a 30-minute meal break to employees working five or more consecutive hours in one shift.
Meal periods are unpaid when an employee is relieved of all work-related duties during an uninterrupted 30-minute break. Employees who receive “bona fide” meal breaks are not expected to stay on call and may leave their workstation if desired.
If the nature of a job doesn't allow employees to be relieved of work duties during their lunch break, employers may provide a fully paid on-duty meal period.
Employees given an on-duty meal period should be able to eat a full meal on the job without incurring lost time or compensation.
According to the Raven Corp, DLSS Case Hearing Officer Decision in 2018, Colorado employees can also leave the premises during unpaid meal breaks.
PRO TIP: Although Colorado Wage Act meal period provisions do not explicitly state this, the phrases "uninterrupted," "duty-free," "completely relieved of all duties," and "permitted to pursue personal activities" imply that an employee should be free to leave the job site or receive compensation.
Compared to California’s Break Laws, which are the most stringent, Colorado doesn't set strict requirements stating when meal breaks can be taken, as long as they don't occur during the first or last working hours.
Unlike California's meal premium (an additional hour of pay for a skipped or non-compliant meal or rest break), Colorado does not mention a meal break penalty.
If an employee skips their break or takes it non-compliantly, the employer must compensate for all their unpaid break time.
Meal deductions
Colorado break laws include a provision that allows employers to provide meals to workers and deduct food costs from employee wages. However, there are strict rules around this practice to see that meals are purchased fairly and wages are withheld with the employee's consent.
Below are the requirements of this provision:
- Reasonable cost or fair market value of meals. The employer can count the cost of the meal towards the employee's minimum hourly wage. The cost should be either what the employer reasonably spent to provide the meal or what the meal would cost in a fair market (whichever is less).
- No profits to the employer. The employer cannot make a profit from the meal. The employee's purchase price for the meal cannot be more than what the meal costs the employer.
- Voluntary and uncoerced acceptance. The employee can not be forced, but must voluntarily agree to receive and pay for the meal.
Rest breaks in Colorado
According to state law, a 10-minute paid rest break is required for every four hours an employee works.
The following table shows how many rest breaks an employee should be given based on the number of hours worked:
Under Colorado’s break law, if an employer fails to permit a 10-minute rest period, they essentially fail to pay the employee 10 minutes worth of wages at the regular or legally required pay rate.
In some instances, failing to provide rest breaks can result in employers having to compensate workers at the overtime rate of pay.
Can I waive my lunch break in Colorado?
Yes, you can waive your lunch break in Colorado. However, there are a few conditions:
- Voluntary: The waiver must be entirely voluntary. Your employer cannot coerce or pressure you into skipping your break.
- Uninterrupted meal period: If you're unable to take an uninterrupted, duty-free meal break due to the nature of your work, your employer must allow you to eat while working, and they must pay you for this time.
Penalties for non-compliance: no claim too small
Employees in Colorado that are paid less than what they have earned have a strong legal basis for claiming full compensation. This statement can also be applied to employees who skip or fail to comply with break rules.
Employees can recover lost wages through civil action or file a complaint with the U.S. Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division (WHD).
According to the law, there is no amount too small that can be recovered, so there is no minimum wage claim amount.
Any person may file a written complaint with the Division alleging a COMPS Order violation within two years of the incident. However, if the employer committed willful violation, the time frame to submit a claim extends to three years.
The Colorado Department of Labor and Employment will open a thorough investigation to enforce compliance with state minimum wage obligations and other provisions.
If you fail to comply with Colorado’s minimum wage and break laws, be prepared to encounter:
- Wage Repayment. Colorado employees who are denied proper meal and rest breaks are entitled to be paid for the time they should have been on break. This includes 10-minute rest breaks for every four hours of work and one 30-minute meal break for shifts over five hours.
- Fines. The Colorado Department of Labor and Employment (CDLE) can impose penalties on employers who violate meal and rest break laws. The amount of fine depends on the severity of the violation and the number of employees affected.
- Lawsuits. Employees can file lawsuits against employers for failing to provide proper meal and rest breaks. If employees win the lawsuit, they may be awarded damages for unpaid wages, emotional distress, and other losses.
Staying up to date with any changes made to the Colorado Wage Act and COMPS Order #38 will help you avoid legal issues and ensure that your employees are compensated fairly.
Follow Colorado’s break laws to prevent lawsuits
To get an idea of the consequences that follow from failing to adhere to Colorado’s break laws, employers should study the case cited below.
GARITANO v. CHICK-FIL-A, INC., is a class action lawsuit filed against Chick-fil-A, that claims the company violated Colorado's labor laws by failing to provide their hourly workers proper meal and rest breaks. The lawsuit alleges that Chick-fil-A did not pay employees for 10-minute breaks, according to their regular or applicable overtime rate.
According to the claim, employees either missed their meal breaks or had their wages improperly deducted for non-compliant breaks, which makes workers entitled to additional pay for each violation.
The lawsuit seeks to represent all Chick-fil-A hourly employees in Colorado affected within the statute of limitations period, arguing that the company had no legal basis for these alleged practices. According to some Chick-fil-A calculations, the sum in controversy may exceed $5 million.
How can Timeero help me stay compliant with Colorado break laws?
Timeero is a powerful GPS tracking app that streamlines everyday business operations. Its capabilities help ease the pains associated with inaccurate reporting, non-compliance, inadequate compensation.
When it comes to Colorado’s break laws, Timeero has many features that will help you remain compliant with state regulations.
Enforce your employee break policy
Timeero allows you to establish company meal and rest break rules that align with your employee break policy.
You can easily customize the duration and compensation status of individual breaks within Timeero. Additionally, there is no limit as to how many break rules you can create within the app.
If your employees are located in different states, you can apply specific break policies to their individual accounts. For example, if you have employees working in California, you can indicate that Timeero’s California Breaks Tracker should be used for compliant break tracking among those employees.
Track and record breaks easily
Once you have assigned breaks to employees, they can easily track and record breaks using their Timeero mobile app.
As a manager, you have the ability to view break reports that provide valuable insight into employee break usage.
Even if employees are spread across multiple job sites or are currently at work in the field, Timeero provides real-time break tracking data that can be used to quickly address break policy violations.
With an accurate break tracking system in place, you can issue precise compensation and maintain legal compliance.
Stay compliant with break reminders
Despite posting visual reminders of break law, some of your employees will still forget to take their breaks.
Timeero allows you to conveniently schedule breaks and issue automatic reminders, maximizing the odds that employees will use their breaks.
You can use the scheduling tool to add breaks to employees' shifts and have notifications about their upcoming breaks delivered 10 minutes before they are entitled to use them. Timeero’s scheduling feature allows you to add breaks into an employee’s schedule and enable reminders that are sent via push notification, 10 minutes before break time.
Keep in mind, these reminders only notify an employee of upcoming breaks. They will still use the app’s time clock to begin and end their breaks.
Generate break reports
To gain detailed insight into employees’ break habits, Timeero allows you to easily generate custom reports.
The data shown in break reports can be used to analyze employee productivity, promote workplace accountability, and prevent overbilling.
Protect your business with an employee break policy
To protect employee well-being and safeguard your company, you will need to create a well defined employee break policy.
The best employee break policies help your company comply with relevant labor laws. In Colorado, your employee break policy should encourage compliance with state specific break laws, as well as the Fair Labor Standards Act, and other federal mandates.
Your break policy should include guidelines for administering breaks in employee specific situations, such as nursing mothers. Even if there are no nursing mothers in your workforce, both federal law and the Colorado Nursing Mothers Act require your break policy to accommodate nursing mothers.
An effective break policy doesn’t just check off legal boxes—it should create an atmosphere of respect and demonstrate your concern for the well-being of your team members. If you need help crafting a well written break policy, download and customize our free template.
If you're curious about what the break laws are in other states, we’ve compiled a helpful guide of Rest and Lunch Break Laws by State.
Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only. Although we do our best to provide up-to-date and accurate information, we are not legal experts and recommend seeking the advice of a professional in regards to compliance with labor laws and other regulations.
Colorado Break Laws: FAQ
Are employers required to provide breaks in Colorado?
Meal and rest breaks are mandatory for employers in Colorado covered by COMPS Order #38. Any employee working more than five hours per day is entitled to an unpaid, uninterrupted, 30-minute meal break. Employees who work four hours or more, are required to take a 10-minute rest break.
How many breaks can you take during an 8-hour shift in Colorado?
If employees are covered by COMPS Order #38, they will be given one 30-minute meal period and two 10-minute rest breaks during their 8-hour shift.
Does Colorado require 15-minute breaks?
No. Colorado state law does not mention or require 15-minute breaks.
What happens if employers fail to provide breaks in Colorado?
Employers may face hefty fines and lawsuits if they fail to give their employees required meal and rest breaks.
