General Audit Department on the issue of providing a rest break at night

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Legally, a lunch break is a time for rest and nutrition. During this period, the employee has the right to do whatever he wants except work - have a snack, sleep, read a book, chat with colleagues. And completely legal!

Let's sum it up

The main conclusions regarding the break for rest and nutrition are given below:

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The legislative framework

All issues related to the provision of lunch time are regulated by the Labor Code of the Russian Federation.

Article 107 prescribes all forms of recreation for citizens:

• during the working day;
• between working days;
• weekends and holidays;
• vacation.

Article 108 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation describes in detail the rules for establishing a meal break.

Who is entitled to it?

The law is the same for all categories of workers. Regardless of what company a person works for - public, private or an individual entrepreneur.

The absence of “lunch” may serve as a reason for contacting the labor inspectorate and the prosecutor’s office.

Attention! The only exception is in cases where the working day is less than 4 hours, a legal break may not be established. But this must be spelled out in the labor regulations and the employment contract.

On what grounds can you take a break to feed your baby? How to write a job application? Find out here.

Lunch break according to the Labor Code of the Russian Federation in 2021

Despite the clear regulation, in practice questions may arise regarding the provision of a period of rest and its use. Let's consider all the nuances.

Minimum and maximum duration

How long should lunch be? This is also stipulated by the Labor Code.

Between half an hour and two hours, the time period can be chosen arbitrarily.

In the vast majority of organizations - 1 hour. Sometimes the lunch break is reduced to 45 minutes in order to reduce the time it takes to go home by 15 minutes.

Limiting the duration below the minimum value is not permitted.

What documents is it secured by?

The rest period, as one of the essential working conditions, is indicated in a single document of the organization - the Internal Regulations - as well as in an individual agreement with the employee - the employment contract.

In the employment contract

All norms that must be spelled out in this document are stipulated by Article 57 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation.

The law states that the operating mode is specified in an individual agreement only if it differs from the generally established one at the enterprise.

Example:

All employees of the organization have a designated time for rest and meals from 13 to 14 hours. And Vasiliev I.V. appealed to the administration to move this time to the period from 12 to 13 hours, and the request was granted. An entry about the transfer of time is made in the employment contract.

In the internal regulations

In the internal regulations, the time for the midday break is mandatory! This document is subject to execution by all employees of the organization without exception.

The rules should provide for the following norms:

• duration of work during the week, indication of irregular working hours;
• period for rest and nutrition;
• the presence of special, in addition to generally established, work stoppages;
• designation of weekends (by days of the week);
• specific dates for the payment of wages.

The rules have an unlimited validity period. Only if they are an annex to the collective agreement do they work during the validity period of the latter.

Is it included in working hours and is it considered as such?

The time intended for eating is a period free from work and is not included in working time under any circumstances.

Therefore, the established working day is calculated without taking into account free time. This time is not included in the payroll sheet.

Can it be floating and how to install it?

"Floating lunch" is being implemented in a number of enterprises when the production process needs to continue continuously throughout the day.

The employer can stipulate in the internal regulations that, for example, a 45-minute release from work is provided at the employee’s discretion from 12 to 16 hours.

This procedure is used in multifunctional centers for the provision of public services, since it is necessary to receive clients and visitors during the entire working time.

Should it be paid?

Personal time for rest and meals is not time for working and therefore is not subject to payment.

In practice, the question arises: “Should the employer pay me extra if I work during lunch?”

The law in this case does not provide for such a possibility.

Working during a break is a person's personal initiative.

How long does it take for lunch?

So, a lunch break is a type of rest time, when an employee is freed from work duties and does what he sees fit. The duration of the break for rest and food is from 30 minutes to 2 hours (Article 108 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).

In this case, the specific duration:

Lunch time is provided neither at the beginning nor at the end of the working day (shift).

Determining the time frame for the duration of a lunch break is possible in two ways:

• the employer brings up the issue of determining the time range for lunch for discussion with the workforce;
• The head of the company independently decides how long lunch will last at the enterprise.

A uniform standard for lunch hours for all employees is enshrined in the PVTR. If one or more employees, for objective reasons, are not satisfied with the option proposed by the employer, the lunch time will be postponed by agreement of the parties. A lunch break, agreed upon individually, must be supported by the provisions of the employment contract or an additional agreement to it.

Nuances

The application of labor legislation in the sphere of organizing leisure for citizens has a number of nuances.

Let's look at some of them:

• With irregular working hours. The question arises about the possibility of involving an employee in performing duties in his free time. The position of the Ministry of Labor on this issue is clear: the employee must perform labor functions during irregular working hours both before and after starting work. The lunch break is not such a period.
• Under special working conditions. In cases where, due to the nature of the production process, it is not possible to provide workers with a full break, the administration is obliged to provide people with food right at the workplace. The time an employee eats food is included in working hours and is subject to payment.
• Specific rest time. The question of how many hours after the start of work it is time for food is decided independently by the enterprise. As a rule, this is the middle of the working day.

What to do if there was a work injury sustained during lunch?

If the injury occurred at the specified time and the person did not perform work duties, was not on the territory of the enterprise and did not use a vehicle provided by the employer, i.e. used personal time at his own discretion, then it is not production.

To the question whether such an injury is paid or not, the answer is no.

When working part time

Article 108 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation states that with a 4-hour working day, the break provided by law may not be established. This provision is enshrined in the labor regulations of the organization.

With a shift work schedule

A shift work schedule presupposes special features for certain categories of workers in providing free time for rest and food.

Thus, Order No. 15 of the Ministry of Transport of Russia dated August 20, 2004 requires drivers to have no more than 2 hours of free time from work, most often in the middle of a work shift. If the duration of the shift is more than 8 hours, then the driver is not prohibited from providing two breaks, but not more than two hours in total.

For medical workers

Taking into account the tension during the working day, medical personnel are given a shortened working week - 39 hours, and taking into account the specifics of the profession, even lower - up to 24 hours.

The following rules apply to this type of interruption:

• the employee is provided with the opportunity to eat at the workplace;
• establishing an interruption of work activity for medical staff with a 6.5 hour working day;
• establishing “floating” boundaries.

Example

It is virtually impossible to determine the timing of meals for emergency personnel. After all, a call to the brigade can come at any time.

The way out of the situation is to establish internal rules for this time from 12 to 15 hours, lasting 30 minutes.

For minors

Persons under the age of majority are entitled to a reduced working day:

• teenagers from 15 to 16 years old - 5 hours;
• at the age of 17-18 years - 7 hours.

The rules for providing a lunch break for young people do not differ from those generally established by labor legislation for other categories of the working population.

In IP

An individual entrepreneur, performing labor functions, independently determines his free time and how he uses it.

If third parties are hired, then legal breaks in work are stipulated in the employment contract using labor legislation.

Special breaks for warming and rest

There are a number of pauses in work that are granted in certain cases:

• Time for heating and nutrition for persons working in cold weather outside or in unheated rooms.
• Special break for loaders.
• A 15-minute break for drivers every two hours.
• Time for feeding the baby (with an interval of three hours).

Important: such types of rest are included in working hours and are subject to payment.

With a 12 hour working day

In situations where working hours are longer than usual (eight hours), several, for example, two parts of a free period from work can be established.

This work schedule is fixed for daily workers, who usually work 2/2 days (two days for work, two days for rest).

This feature is enshrined in the internal regulations and (or) in the employment agreement.

Is it possible to work without a break?

Setting meal times is the responsibility of every employer.

Even if the employee himself requests permission to work without stopping in order to finish the working day earlier, he must be refused.

Making a positive decision will be unlawful.

Can you get fired for swearing at work? Details of this difficult topic are on our website. What is a flexible work schedule? Read in this article.

Can an employer extend the probationary period? Find out here.

In what cases is it possible and how to write an application to postpone the break?

The issues of transferring rest time are not regulated by law. However, there are situations when a person permanently or temporarily needs to change his work schedule due to personal or family circumstances.

This issue can be resolved by mutual agreement between the employee and management. The application must indicate the reason for postponing the suspension of work and the desired time.

If the reason is truly valid, then the administration will accommodate the employee halfway. Features must be fixed in an additional agreement to the employment contract.

Part-timer

The provisions on interrupting the work process for lunch, established by Article 108 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, also apply to part-time workers.

How can an employer control lunch time?

A person's personal time presupposes that he can use it at his own discretion. Therefore, the administration has no right to control the employee’s actions during this period.

The administration controls only the timeliness of the employee’s departure and his appearance at the workplace upon completion.

In case of systematic violations of labor regulations, or being late from a break, the employee may be subject to disciplinary action.

Attention! Lunch time is not included in the calculation to determine the fact of absenteeism.

The right to rest during the working day is guaranteed to every person. Knowing all the nuances of providing such a break according to the law will allow you to avoid conflict situations with the employer.

Attention!

• Due to frequent changes in legislation, information sometimes becomes outdated faster than we can update it on the website.
• All cases are very individual and depend on many factors. Basic information does not guarantee a solution to your specific problems.

That's why FREE expert consultants work for you around the clock!

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Working time and rest time

Is working during lunch hours overtime or not?

As a general rule, the lunch period does not count as working time. Therefore, work during a break has the attribute of overtime, i.e., work performed outside the normal working hours.

But overtime is characterized by the employer's initiative. Only if duties are performed during a lunch break at the call of management, work is recognized as overtime and paid in the appropriate amount.

If overtime work leaves the employee less than 30 minutes for lunch, the State Labor Inspectorate will have claims in connection with a violation of Art. 108 Labor Code of the Russian Federation.

An employment contract concluded on an irregular working day does not allow work during lunch to be recognized as overtime (Article 97, Article 101 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).