7 Colo. Code Regs. § 1103-1-5 : Department of Labor and Employment — Division of Labor Standards and Statistics (Includes 1103 Series) —1 - COLORADO OVERTIME AND MINIMUM PAY STANDARDS ORDER (COMPS ORDER) #36 —1-5 - Meal and Rest Periods

5.1 Meal Periods. Employees shall be entitled to an uninterrupted and duty-free meal period of at least a 30-minute duration when the shift exceeds 5 consecutive hours. Such meal periods, to the extent practical, shall be at least one hour after the start, and one hour before the end of the shift. Employees must be completely relieved of all duties and permitted to pursue personal activities for a period to qualify as non-work, uncompensated time. When the nature of the business activity or other circumstances make an uninterrupted meal period impractical, the employee shall be permitted to consume an on-duty meal while performing duties. Employees shall be permitted to fully consume a meal of choice on the job and be fully compensated for the on-duty meal period without any loss of time or compensation.

5.2 Rest Periods. Every employer shall authorize and permit a compensated 10-minute rest period for each 4 hours of work, or major fractions thereof, for all employees, as follows, except as provided in exemptions or variances in Rule 2:

Work Hours	Rest Periods Required
2 or fewer	0
Over 2, and up to 6	1
Over 6, and up to 10	2
Over 10, and up to 14	3
Over 14, and up to 18	4
Over 18, and up to 22	5
Over 22	6

5.2.1 Rest periods shall be 10 minutes unless,

(A) on a given workday, or in a writing covering up to a one-year period that is signed by both parties, the employee and the employer agree, voluntarily and without coercion, to have two 5-minute breaks, as long as 5 minutes is sufficient, in the work setting, to allow the employee to go back and forth to a bathroom or other location where a bona fide break would be taken; or

(B) if the below conditions are met, rest periods need not be 10 minutes every 4 hours for any employees (i) governed by a collective bargaining agreement at any employer, or (ii) during time they are providing Medicaid-funded services for a service provider or agency receiving at least 75% of its annual total gross revenue from Medicaid or other governmental funds for providing such services within Medicaid home- and community-based services waivers, and the services provided require continuous supervision of the service recipient, or providing a rest period would interfere with ensuring the service recipient's health, safety, and welfare. Employees in category (i) or (ii) must receive:

(1) rest periods that average, over the workday, at least 10 minutes per 4 hours worked; and

(2) at least 5 minutes of rest in every 4 hours worked.

Such an agreement does not change an employee's right to pay for rest periods under Rule 5.2.4. Additionally, when (B)(ii) above applies: When direct support professionals or direct care workers serving individuals with disabilities spend time in community outings with those individuals with disabilities- as part of day programs, supported living services, or one-to-one respite or personal care- time in such outings does not require rest breaks or pay for rest breaks.

5.2.2 Rest periods, to the extent practical, shall be in the middle of each 4-hour work period. It is not necessary that the employee leave the premises for a rest period.

5.2.3 Required rest periods are time worked for the purposes of calculating minimum wage and overtime obligations.

5.2.4 When an employee is not authorized and permitted a required 10-minute rest period, his or her shift is effectively extended by 10 minutes without compensation. Because a rest period requires 10 minutes of pay without work being performed, work during a rest period is additional work for which additional pay is not provided. Therefore, a failure by an employer to authorize and permit a 10-minute compensated rest period is a failure to pay 10 minutes of wages at the employee's agreed-upon or legally required (whichever is higher) rate of pay. This Rule 5.2.4 applies equally to any required rest period time not provided (e.g., rest periods that are incomplete, or for non-hourly-paid employees, or under any other rule or statute providing rest periods of different durations).

7 CCR 1103-1-5

37 CR 23, December 10, 2014, effective 12/30/2014

38 CR 23, December 10, 2015, effective 1/1/2016

39 CR 23, December 10, 2016, effective 1/1/2017

40 CR 23, December 10, 2017, effective 1/1/2018

41 CR 23, December 10, 2018, effective 1/1/2019

43 CR 04, February 25, 2020, effective 3/16/2020

43 CR 12, June 25, 2020, effective 7/15/2020

43 CR 23, December 10, 2020, effective 1/1/2021

44 CR 23, December 10, 2021, effective 1/1/2022