Maine Required Workday Break & Meal Periods 2024
Workday Meal Periods:
REQUIRED
By Statute
Workday Rest Periods:
No Regulation
Maine has regulations describing workday meal / lunch breaks to be provided to employees, but does not mandate that employees be provided additional, shorter break periods. This page provides details about Maine's meal period requirements.
Mandatory Workday Lunch / Meal Breaks in Maine
Maine requires that employees receive a ½ hour meal break, after 6 consecutive hours of work, except in cases of emergency and except where the nature of their work allows employees frequent breaks during workday.
Which employees are covered by Maine's meal period regulations?
Maine's meal break law is applicable to places of employment where 3 or more employees are on duty at one time. It is not applicable if collective bargaining or other written employer-employee agreement provides other meal arrangements.
Note: Maine Has Special Regulations for Minor Employees
In addition to a general regulation requiring meal periods for employees, Maine has special regulations that require meal periods for minors under age 18. These regulations, which require more frequent and / or longer meal / break periods, take precedence over the general regulations for minor employees. Learn more about Maine's child labor regulations here.
Mandatory Workday Rest Periods in Maine
While some states have labor regulations requiring that employees be allowed one or more workday rest periods, the Maine government has no such regulations. Therefore, in Maine, any breaks or rest periods are provided to employees at the discretion of the employer.
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