An employee must be provided with a ten (10) minute uninterrupted rest break for every four (4) hours that they work in a day. Nonexempt California employees must be given a meal or lunch break for a minimum of 30 minutes for shifts longer than five hours.The rest period is based on the total hours worked daily and must be at the minimum rate of a net ten consecutive minutes for each four hour work period. A meal break does not have to be paid, but it must be a 30-minute period that is uninterrupted. Employers must provide each employee with earned sick leave. As a general rule, and insofar as practicable, the rest break must be in the middle of each four-hour work period. Unlike federal laws, employment laws in California require employers to provide nonexempt workers with paid and unpaid breaks for most shifts. The California Labor Code provides that employees who work more than five (5) hours in a day are entitled to a thirty (30) minute meal break. California law requires that Employers record the meal break. This means that the employee should clock out and clock in for the full 30-minute meal break.