# Colorado — Meal and rest break requirements by US state — hours worked before a break is owed, its length, and whether it's paid, quoted from the state's own labor law

For Colorado, meal break rule is 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; rest break rule is 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; statute or regulation is 7 CCR 1103-1-5 (COMPS Order #38, Rule 5), recorded from its source on 2026-09-02.

- **State:** Colorado _(our reading, not quoted from the source)_
- **Meal break rule:** 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 _(verified: appears in its own passage below)_
- **Rest break rule:** 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 _(verified: appears in its own passage below)_
- **Statute or regulation:** 7 CCR 1103-1-5 (COMPS Order #38, Rule 5) _(our reading, not quoted from the source)_

## What the source says

> 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.

## Where each value comes from

This source states these in separate places, so each value is shown with the passage that states it.

### Meal break rule

> 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.

### Rest break rule

> 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:

### Statute or regulation

> 7 CCR 1103-1-5 - Meal and Rest Periods

## Source

- https://www.law.cornell.edu/regulations/colorado/7-CCR-1103-1-5

Last verified: 2026-09-02. Review by: 2027-09-02.
Part of [Meal and rest break requirements by US state — hours worked before a break is owed, its length, and whether it's paid, quoted from the state's own labor law](https://referencesource.org/meal-and-rest-break-requirements-by-state/).