Short answer. An uninterrupted, duty-free 30-minute meal period when the shift is longer than 5 consecutive hours, ideally at least an hour after the start and an hour before the end. A paid 10-minute rest period for each 4 hours of work or major fraction: one for a shift over 2 hours, two over 6, three over 10, four over 14.
Colorado breaks at a glance
- Meal break
- An uninterrupted, duty-free 30-minute meal period when the shift is longer than 5 consecutive hours, ideally at least an hour after the start and an hour before the end.
- Rest breaks
- A paid 10-minute rest period for each 4 hours of work or major fraction: one for a shift over 2 hours, two over 6, three over 10, four over 14.
- Paid?
- Meal: unpaid if the employee is relieved of all duty; rest: paid.
- Law
- COMPS Order #39, 7 CCR 1103-1, Rule 5
- Agency
- Colorado Department of Labor and Employment, Division of Labor Standards and Statistics
In Colorado's words
Meal break
"when the shift exceeds 5 consecutive hours."
Rest breaks
"authorize and permit a compensated 10-minute rest period for each 4 hours of work,"
Breaks by shift length in Colorado
For an adult working the hours in one stretch, Colorado's rule as we read it calls for:
| Shift | Meal break | Rest breaks |
|---|---|---|
| 2 hours | None yet | None yet |
| 2½ hours | None yet | 10 minutes |
| 4 hours | None yet | 10 minutes |
| 5 hours | None yet | 10 minutes |
| 5½ hours | 30 minutes | 10 minutes |
| 6 hours | 30 minutes | 10 minutes |
| 6½ hours | 30 minutes | 10 minutes and 10 minutes |
| 8 hours | 30 minutes | 10 minutes and 10 minutes |
Other shift lengths: open the checker set to Colorado.
Who the Colorado rule covers
Most employees covered by the COMPS Order. Rule 2 exempts some workers from meal and rest rules, such as livestock haulers, combine and harvester operators while harvesting, and drivers under the federal Motor Carrier Act.
Waivers and exceptions in Colorado
When an uninterrupted meal period is impractical, the employee may eat on duty, fully paid. An employer and employee may agree to two 5-minute rest breaks instead of one 10-minute break, for a day or in a signed writing covering up to a year.
If a Colorado employer misses a break
A rest period that isn't authorized and permitted counts as 10 minutes of unpaid wages owed, at the employee's agreed or legally required rate, whichever is higher.
Worth knowing in Colorado
The rest-break table in Rule 5.2 runs up to six 10-minute breaks for a shift over 22 hours.
Not stated on the Colorado pages we read: a separate rule for minors.
Official Colorado sources
- Colorado CDLE: COMPS Order #39, 7 CCR 1103-1 (checked November 2026)
Colorado rules as published on the pages above, checked November 2026. General information, not legal advice; we are not lawyers. A union contract, an industry order or a city ordinance can add to them.
Colorado break questions
When is a meal break required in Colorado?
An uninterrupted, duty-free 30-minute meal period when the shift is longer than 5 consecutive hours, ideally at least an hour after the start and an hour before the end. Colorado Department of Labor and Employment, Division of Labor Standards and Statistics puts it as "when the shift exceeds 5 consecutive hours."
How many rest breaks does Colorado require?
A paid 10-minute rest period for each 4 hours of work or major fraction: one for a shift over 2 hours, two over 6, three over 10, four over 14.
Is a meal break paid in Colorado?
On the official page we checked, the meal break is unpaid if the employee is relieved of all duty. If the employee has to keep working or stay on duty, the time is paid.
Can a Colorado employee skip or waive a break?
When an uninterrupted meal period is impractical, the employee may eat on duty, fully paid. An employer and employee may agree to two 5-minute rest breaks instead of one 10-minute break, for a day or in a signed writing covering up to a year.
Who is covered by the Colorado break rule?
Most employees covered by the COMPS Order. Rule 2 exempts some workers from meal and rest rules, such as livestock haulers, combine and harvester operators while harvesting, and drivers under the federal Motor Carrier Act.
What happens if a Colorado employer skips a required break?
A rest period that isn't authorized and permitted counts as 10 minutes of unpaid wages owed, at the employee's agreed or legally required rate, whichever is higher.
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