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Bona Fide Meal Period
Practical Law Glossary Item 7-511-5549 (Approx. 3 pages)
Glossary
Bona Fide Meal Period
A break that is not compensable working time under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) (and some state law equivalents). To qualify as a bona fide meal period, an employee must:
- Have sufficient time to eat their meal (generally, at least 30 minutes).
- Be completely relieved of their work duties (both active and inactive) during that time.
Breaks and meal periods are not required under the FLSA. However, some state and local laws require employers to provide breaks for regular meals and other purposes. For information about meal and break periods under state wage and hour law, see Wage and Hour Laws: State Q&A Tool: Question 5.
For more information about the FLSA, see Practice Notes, Wage and Hour Law: Overview and Compensable Time.