Kansas Break Laws

December 7th 2025

Understanding Kansas labor laws on employee breaks is important for both employers and employees. While the state doesn’t mandate rest or meal breaks, employers covered by the FLSA, who offer them voluntarily, must follow some federal rules.

This article covers Kansas break laws for rest and meal breaks, breastfeeding breaks, and break rules for minors, as well as the potential penalties for violating federal break rules.

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Rest Breaks in Kansas

Employers in Kansas are not required to provide any breaks under state or federal law. However, they can voluntarily offer rest breaks to boost employee morale and productivity.

If a Kansas employer covered by the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) decides to offer rest breaks, shorter breaks of five to 20 minutes must be counted as hours worked and be paid. This break time must also count as hours worked when calculating overtime pay in Kansas.

Additionally, rest breaks cannot be offset against other working time, be it on-call time or waiting time.

Learn more about overtime laws in Kansas.

Meal Breaks in Kansas

There are no mandatory meal breaks under federal or Kansas break laws. However, some employers can choose to offer them to boost employee well-being.

When an employer covered by the federal FLSA provides meal breaks, the break must be 30 minutes long, and the employee must be completely relieved from duty for it to qualify as an unpaid bona fide meal period. A shorter meal period may also qualify in special situations.

If an employee is required to spend the break time working, such as eating at their desk, the meal break must be paid.

However, when an employee is completely relieved of job duties, employers are not required to allow employees to leave the work premises.

Breastfeeding Breaks in Kansas

Although there are no breastfeeding break laws in Kansas, employers covered by the federal FLSA and PUMP Act are required to provide nursing employees reasonable break time to express milk for up to one year after the child’s birth, whenever the break is required.

Employers must also provide a private space, other than a bathroom, that is shielded from view and free from intrusion.

These pumping breaks can be unpaid if employees are completely relieved from all job duties. However, if an employee spends the break working, they must be paid.

Employees can also use their existing paid breaks for breastfeeding. In such cases, they must be paid the same way as other employees who use those breaks.

Some employees are exempt from FLSA protections for nursing mothers, including those in certain industries, such as airlines, railroads, and motorcoach carriers.

Employers with fewer than 50 employees can also qualify for an exemption if providing the break time and private space could cause undue hardship to their business operations.

Explore salaried employee rights in Kansas.

Breaks for Minor Employees in Kansas

Employers in Kansas are not required to provide breaks to minor employees.

However, Kansas child labor laws restrict the number of hours and the day timings minors can work. State law also prohibits minors under the age of 14 from working.

Penalties for Violating Break Laws in Kansas

Employers covered by the FLSA cannot fire, demote, or retaliate against an employee for requesting or using breastfeeding breaks in Kansas. Retaliation in any form counts as a violation of the FLSA protections for nursing employees.

Such employees can report violations to the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division or pursue a private lawsuit. If found guilty, the employer can be ordered to provide:

  • Reinstatement or a promotion.
  • Back pay, plus an equal amount in liquidated damages.
  • Compensatory and other make-whole remedies.
  • Punitive damages.

Additionally, when Kansas employers covered by the FLSA provide breaks, employees cannot extend the break time beyond the approved limit. Otherwise, the extended time doesn’t count as hours worked, and the employee can also be punished for the violation.

Important Cautionary Note

This content is provided for informational purposes only. While we make every effort to ensure the accuracy of the information presented, we cannot guarantee that it is free of errors or omissions. Users are advised to independently verify any critical information and should not solely rely on the content provided.