How many breaks do you get? Rest and meal breaks for your shift
An 8-hour work period, such as 9:00 to 17:00, gets two paid 10-minute rest breaks and one 30-minute meal break, usually unpaid. 2 to 4 hours gets one rest break, and more than 4 hours adds the meal break. Type your shift to see your breaks, when they fall if you have not agreed times, and your paid hours.
Worked out for the example. Change the boxes to make it yours.
| Work period, start to finish | 8 hours |
|---|---|
| Paid 10-minute rest breaks | Two |
| 30-minute meal breaks (unpaid) | One |
| Rest break, if no times are agreed | around 11:00 |
| Meal break, if no times are agreed | around 13:00 |
| Rest break, if no times are agreed | around 15:00 |
| Paid hours, with the meal break unpaid | 7 hours 30 minutes |
| Pay before tax at $26.00 an hour | $195.00 |
- These are minimums. If you and your employer have agreed times for your breaks, they are taken then; the times shown apply only where nothing is agreed, so far as is reasonable and practicable.
- Paid hours take off a 30-minute meal break. Rest breaks are paid, so they stay in. A longer meal break by agreement comes off too.
Free on every plan. Your account adds this shift to Your Timesheets on the date you chose, after asking, with the unpaid meal break taken off and the breaks noted.
How many breaks a shift gets
Part 6D of the Employment Relations Act 2000 counts breaks by the work period: from the time you start to the time you finish, with every authorised break inside it, paid or not (section 69ZC). So 9:00 to 17:00 with a half-hour lunch is an 8-hour work period, not 7.5. Section 69ZD gives one paid 10-minute rest break for 2 to 4 hours; one rest break and one 30-minute meal break for more than 4 and up to 6 hours; and two rest breaks and a meal break for more than 6 and up to 8 hours. Past 8 hours the count starts again on the time beyond, so a 10-hour period adds a third rest break and a 12 and a half hour period a second meal break. Under 2 hours there is no break. Our article on rest and meal breaks covers your rights in full.
When the breaks fall
If you and your employer have agreed times, the breaks are taken then (section 69ZE(1)). Without an agreement, the employer must, so far as is reasonable and practicable, give a single rest break in the middle of the period; for 4 to 6 hours, the rest break a third of the way through and the meal break two thirds through; and for longer periods the meal break in the middle with a rest break halfway on each side. For 10 hours or more, Employment New Zealand places the first three breaks in the first 8 hours and starts the pattern again for the time beyond. The calculator shows these default times, rounded to 5 minutes. Employment New Zealand expects the timing to be negotiated in good faith, with a take it or leave it approach unlikely to count as an agreement.
Paid and unpaid time
Employment New Zealand says employers must pay for rest breaks, at the rate you are paid to work, but do not have to pay for meal breaks. So a rest break stays in your paid hours and an unpaid meal break comes off: an 8-hour work period is 7.5 paid hours. Some agreements pay the meal break, and you can agree a longer one, such as an hour, if you work the extra time. An agreement can give more breaks but cannot remove or reduce the minimum: a clause that tries has no effect (section 69ZG). For a week of shifts, the weekly timesheet calculator takes the breaks off each day.
Exceptions, and breaks you did not get
Employers in essential services or protecting national security can be exempt where replacing staff on their breaks would be unreasonably costly; then the breaks are agreed differently, or the employer must give reasonable compensation, such as equivalent time off or pay at your ordinary rate (sections 69ZEA and 69ZEB). Some other laws set breaks of their own: Employment New Zealand gives the example of commercial drivers, who must take a 30-minute break after 5 and a half hours of driving. If you are not getting your breaks, raise it with your employer first. An employer who does not provide them is liable to a penalty from the Employment Relations Authority (section 69ZF), and a Labour Inspector can help.
Questions
How many breaks do I get in an 8 hour shift in NZ?
Two paid 10-minute rest breaks and one 30-minute meal break, usually unpaid. That holds for any work period of more than 6 hours and under 10, so it also covers an 8-hour shift with a half-hour lunch on top, which is an 8.5-hour work period.
How many breaks do I get in a 4 hour shift?
One paid 10-minute rest break. A work period of 2 hours up to 4 gets one rest break; a meal break starts once the period is more than 4 hours.
How many breaks for a 12 hour shift?
Three paid 10-minute rest breaks and one 30-minute meal break. The first 8 hours carry two rest breaks and a meal break, and the 4 hours beyond add one more rest break. A second meal break starts once the time beyond 8 hours is more than 4 hours.
Are meal breaks paid in NZ?
Not by law. Employment New Zealand says employers must pay for rest breaks but do not have to pay for meal breaks. Your employment agreement can pay them.
Can my employer make me work through my breaks?
Not as a rule. An agreement cannot remove the minimum breaks, and an employer that does not provide them is liable to a penalty. Only employers in essential services or national security can be exempt, and then they must agree other breaks or compensate you.
What happens when I save the shift?
Your account adds the shift to Your Timesheets on the date you chose, after asking, with the unpaid meal break taken off and the breaks noted. Logging hours is free on every plan.
Sources
- Employment Relations Act 2000, Part 6D (ss 69ZC to 69ZH): rest breaks and meal breaks.
- Employment New Zealand: rest and meal breaks.
- business.govt.nz: breaks.
- Minimum Wage Order 2026 (SL 2026/16), in force 1 April 2026.
More free tools: see all the calculators.