Believe it or not, employers in many states have no legal obligation to give their employees any breaks during the work day. The federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) does not require employers to provide any breaks, and many states follow the same rule. Other states require employers to provide rest breaks, meal breaks, or both.
A small number of states require employers to provide paid rest breaks during the work day.
Most New York employees are entitled to an unpaid meal break of 30 minutes if they work a shift of more than six hours that spans the noonday lunch time. Employees whose work days start after 1 p.m. and run for at least six hours are entitled to an unpaid 45-minute meal break. Employees who work more than eight hours may be entitled to an additional 20-minute meal break, unpaid, if their work day starts before 11 a.m. and runs past 7 p.m.
Factory workers are entitled to a one-hour meal break.
New York law does not require employers to provide rest breaks. If your employer chooses to let employees take rest breaks, it must pay you for breaks that last for 20 minutes or less.