Acme Corporation's longstanding policy is to give non-exempt employees two 10-minute rest breaks each workday. It treats these breaks as paid work time. Management recently realized that, over the years, most of the employees have gradually come to be spending 15 to 20 minutes or even a little longer on each break. Acme sent out a memo reminding everyone that the breaks are limited to 10 minutes, but it had no effect. Could Acme start considering the over-10-minute extensions to be unpaid time?

The U.S. Labor Department has said that this is permitted under the federal Fair Labor Standards Act, if an employer makes its intentions clear in advance.

The FLSA does not require employers to give rest breaks (which should be distinguished from lactation breaks, which are required). Many employers do give rest breaks, of course, and the Labor Department's position is that short periods like this (typically running from five to about 20 minutes) count as work time for employees who are subject to the FLSA's minimum-wage and/or overtime requirements. In the Labor Department's view, such breaks mainly have the effect of promoting employee efficiency, so they cannot be deducted from or offset against other compensable time.