Washington: Meal and Rest Break Requirements
The short answer
Yes. Washington generally requires a 30-minute meal period on a shift longer than five hours and a paid 10-minute rest period for each four hours worked; meals may be waived by agreement, but rest periods may not be waived.
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This is the general rule in Washington. Ezel applies current Washington law to your specific facts and answers with citations to the statutes.
| Governing law | WAC 296-126-092; coverage/variance rules in WAC 296-126-001 and -130; L&I Administrative Policy ES.C.6.1 |
|---|---|
| Required meal break | 30 min on a shift over 5 hours, starting between hours 2 and 5; no more than 5 consecutive hours without a meal; extra meal for 3+ hours beyond the normal day |
| Required paid rest break | Paid 10 min per 4 hours, near the midpoint; no more than 3 hours without rest; qualifying intermittent rests may total 10 min (§ 092(4)-(5)) |
| Paid or unpaid? | Duty-free uninterrupted meal may be unpaid; on-duty or interrupted meal is paid; every required rest period is paid (§ 092(1), (4); ES.C.6.1) |
| Waiver and on-duty meals | Meal may be waived by employee-employer agreement and later requested; writing recommended, not required; rest cannot be waived; on-duty meal is paid |
| Who is covered or exempt | Ordinary adult nonagricultural employees; excludes newspaper vendors/carriers and domestic/casual labor; agriculture and minors use separate rules; qualifying construction CBA may vary breaks |
| Separate rule for minors | Under 16: uninterrupted 30-min meal by 4 consecutive hours and a 10-min paid rest, with no more than 2 hours without either; ages 16-17: 30-min meal by 5 hours and paid 10-min rest when working 4+ hours |
| Remedy for a missed break | Worker may complain to L&I; agency may order corrective action and/or money owed; missed paid rest time is compensable work time (L&I complaint guidance; § 092(4)) |
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Requirements one by one
The adult meal clock
Under WAC 296-126-092(1)-(3), a worker on a shift longer than five hours
must receive at least 30 minutes for a meal. It must begin no earlier than the
second hour and no later than the fifth hour. No employee may be required to
work more than five consecutive hours without a meal. Working at least three
hours beyond the normal workday adds another 30-minute meal before or during
the overtime period.
Paid rest periods
WAC 296-126-092(4) requires at least 10 minutes of paid rest for every four
hours worked. The employer should place it near the midpoint of the work
period, and may not require more than three hours of work without rest. When
the nature of the work permits genuine intermittent rests, subsection (5)
allows shorter intervals that together equal 10 minutes per four hours.
Pay, waiver, and on-duty meals
L&I's Administrative Policy ES.C.6.1 explains that a 30-minute meal may be
unpaid only when the employee is completely relieved from duty and receives
uninterrupted mealtime. An on-duty or interrupted meal is paid, and an
interruption does not count toward the required 30 minutes of mealtime.
An employee may choose to waive a meal if the employer agrees, and may later
request the meal again. L&I recommends a written request but does not require
one. A rest period cannot be waived.
Coverage and separate rules
The general chapter covers ordinary adult nonagricultural employees.
WAC 296-126-001 excludes newspaper vendors and carriers, domestic or
casual labor in private residences, and agricultural labor. Agriculture has
its own break rule. A construction-trades collective-bargaining agreement may
set different meal and rest requirements when it meets WAC 296-126-130(8).
Covered hospital workers involved in direct patient care or clinical services
also receive the uninterrupted-break protections in RCW 49.12.480. That
hospital-specific layer does not replace the ordinary WAC schedule.
Workers under 18
Washington replaced its youth-employment regulations effective July 1, 2026.
Under WAC 296-125-111, a nonagricultural worker under 16 needs an
uninterrupted 30-minute meal before working more than four consecutive hours
and a paid 10-minute rest; the minor cannot work more than two consecutive
hours without receiving either kind of break.
Under WAC 296-125-121, a 16- or 17-year-old needs an uninterrupted
30-minute meal before working more than five consecutive hours. Work of four
or more hours also requires a paid rest of at least 10 minutes, and the minor
cannot work more than three hours without that rest.
What trips people up
The meal waiver and rest rule are different. Employer and employee may agree
to waive a meal, but the employee cannot waive the paid rest period.
Staying at the workplace does not by itself make a meal paid. The question is
whether the employee is completely free from duties. If the employer requires
the employee to remain on duty or interrupts the meal for work, the whole meal
period is paid and the worker must still receive 30 total minutes of mealtime.
The old minor sections, WAC 296-125-0285 and -0287, are no longer current.
They were repealed July 1, 2026 and replaced by WAC 296-125-111 and -121.
Common questions
Can I skip lunch so I can leave early?
Only if your employer agrees to the meal waiver. You may later withdraw that
choice and request the meal period. The employer may also decline the waiver
and require you to take the meal.
Can my employer combine several short pauses into the paid rest period?
Sometimes. WAC 296-126-092(5) permits intermittent rests only when the
nature of the work genuinely allows them and the intervals together equal at
least 10 minutes for each four hours worked.
What can I do if a required break is denied?
Washington L&I accepts worker-rights complaints involving missing meal and
rest breaks. Its official complaint guidance says the agency may issue a
citation and order corrective action or payment of money owed when a complaint
is substantiated. Because required rest time is expressly on the employer's
time, unpaid missed-rest time is compensable work time.
Statutes and sources
- WAC 296-126-001, -092, and -130. The current official regulations set
adult coverage, meal and paid-rest schedules, variances, and the qualifying
construction-CBA alternative. Break rule,
coverage, and
variances
(accessed July 12, 2026). - WAC 296-125-111 and -121. These replacement regulations, effective July
1, 2026, set the current nonagricultural break schedules for workers under
18. Under 16 and
ages 16-17
(accessed July 12, 2026). - RCW 49.12.480. The current official statute adds uninterrupted-break
protections for covered hospital direct-care and clinical workers.
Official text
(accessed July 12, 2026). - Washington L&I Administrative Policy ES.C.6.1. Current official policy
explains meal pay, interruptions, waivers, and the nonwaivable rest period.
Official PDF
(accessed July 12, 2026). - Washington L&I, Worker Rights Complaints. Official guidance describes
the complaint process and possible corrective or payment orders.
Official guidance
(accessed July 12, 2026).
Source links
Every statute quoted above, linked, with the date we checked it.
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