• An employee on break.break time image by Mat Hayward from Fotolia.com
  
  Laws on lunch and coffee breaks or rest periods at workplaces can be different in each state. For this reason, knowing these laws as they apply to your state can be important to avoid misunderstandings. In Wisconsin, break laws are not numerous or complex, but some important regulations do exist.
  
  

Coffee Breaks

• There are no laws in Wisconsin that mandate or restrict coffee breaks or other types of short rest periods. An employer and employee are left to negotiate breaks on their own. However, if a break spanning less than 30 minutes is granted to an employee, that employee must remain on the clock throughout the break, meaning he should be paid for it.
  
  

Lunch Breaks

• Though it is not required, the law in Wisconsin recommends a lunch period of at least 30 minutes per shift. “On duty” lunch breaks, meaning breaks for a meal that are less than 30 minutes or require the employee to continue performing work duties during lunch time, must be paid when provided. Lunch breaks of longer than 30 minutes do not need to be paid as long as the employee is not required to perform work for the employer or remain on the premises during the break.
  
  

Breaks for Minors

• Laws on breaks for employees under 18 years of age are more strict and regulated than break laws for adults. An employer must provide a lunch break of at least 30 minutes to a minor during each shift. The lunch break must also take place very near to the middle of the shift or during a standard meal time, such as noon or 6:00 p.m. Those under 18 are also required by law to be provided a lunch break at most six hours after the beginning of the shift.