Last verified October 25, 2026 · How we verify
Nebraska break laws
Meal and rest break rules for adult hourly workers in Nebraska, what federal law adds, teen work limits and overtime. Check your own shift below.
Meal and rest break rules for adult hourly workers in Nebraska, what federal law adds, teen work limits and overtime. Check your own shift below.
Nebraska requires a 30-minute lunch break only in assembling plants, workshops and mechanical establishments, but no rest breaks. Short breaks your employer gives must be paid under federal law. Overtime is due after 40 hours in a workweek, the federal rule; there is no daily overtime.
Assembling plants, workshops and mechanical establishments only: at least 30 consecutive minutes for lunch in each 8-hour shift, off the premises if the employee wishes. Who it covers: assembling plants, workshops and mechanical establishments.
“shall allow all of their employees not less than thirty consecutive minutes for lunch in each eight-hour shift”
Verified October 26, 2026 · Source: Nebraska Revised Statute 48-212
No state law requires rest breaks for adult private-sector employees (not listed in the U.S. DOL state table). Rules for minors may differ.
“States not listed do not require paid rest periods.”
Verified October 26, 2026 · Source: U.S. DOL, Minimum Paid Rest Period Requirements under State Law for Adult Employees in Private Sector (table last revised January 1, 2023)
Nebraska has no state overtime rule of its own. Overtime follows the federal law: time and a half for hours over 40 in a workweek if your job is not exempt. The state sends overtime questions to the US Department of Labor.
“For questions regarding overtime, travel time, and salaried individuals contact the United States Department of Labor”
Verified October 26, 2026 · Source: Nebraska Department of Labor, Nebraska wage facts sheet
Federal law does not require meal or rest breaks. Short breaks (about 5 to 20 minutes) that an employer gives count as paid work time; meal periods of 30 minutes or more can be unpaid if the employee is completely relieved of duty. More on the federal rules.
Nursing employees also have a federal right to reasonable unpaid break time and a private place, not a bathroom, to pump breast milk for one year after the birth. What the federal pump-break rule covers.
How the rules above apply to four typical shifts. Hours worked exclude the unpaid lunch.
| Shift | Meal break | Rest breaks | Overtime |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6-hour shift, no break | Not required for this shift | Not required by Nebraska law | Counted by the week: hours over 40 in the workweek |
| 8-hour shift, 30-min lunch | 30 min (8 or more hours) | Not required by Nebraska law | Counted by the week: hours over 40 in the workweek |
| 10-hour shift, 30-min lunch | 30 min (8 or more hours) | Not required by Nebraska law | Counted by the week: hours over 40 in the workweek |
| 12-hour shift, 30-min lunch | 30 min (8 or more hours) | Not required by Nebraska law | Counted by the week: hours over 40 in the workweek |
Rules for adult, non-exempt private-sector workers. Industry orders, union contracts, local laws and exemptions can change the answer. General reference, not legal advice.
Teen workers in Nebraska have limits on how long and how late they can work. Where the Nebraska and federal limits differ, the stricter one applies. Nebraska is also one of 33 states with a separate meal-break rule for minors; when a teen is covered by both the adult and the minor rule, the employer must follow the higher standard (U.S. DOL). Ask the Nebraska labor department for its details.
| Age | Hour limits | Can't work between |
|---|---|---|
| Under 16 (Nebraska) | Up to 8 hours a day and 48 a week | 8 p.m. to 6 a.m., under 14. 10 p.m. (beyond 10 p.m. before non-school day with special permit) to 6 a.m., 14 and 15. |
| 16 and 17 (Nebraska) | No state limit listed | No state limit listed |
| Under 16 (federal) | Non-school days and weeks: up to 8 hours a day and 40 a week School days and weeks: up to 3 hours a day and 18 a week | 7 p.m. (9 p.m. June 1 through Labor Day) to 7 a.m. |
| 16 and 17 (federal) | No hour limits | No night limits |
Verified October 26, 2026 · Source: U.S. Department of Labor, Selected State Child Labor Standards Affecting Minors Under 18 in Non-farm Employment, as of July 15, 2025. School-day limits usually apply only to students.
If you are denied breaks that Nebraska law requires, or not paid for time you worked, you can complain to the state. File a wage complaint with the Nebraska Department of Labor, Labor Standards, using its online form. It covers unpaid or late wages. The department's pages do not state a filing deadline. Official page ↗ Verified October 25, 2026
You can also call the federal Wage and Hour Division free at 1-866-487-9243. Firing or punishing you for a wage complaint is illegal.
Your employer must give you a pay stub, printed or electronic. It must show the employer's name, the hours you were paid for, your wages and the deductions taken. Source ↗ Verified October 25, 2026
Paid break time counts as hours worked, at no less than Nebraska's minimum wage of $15.00 an hour, rising to $15.26 on January 1, 2027. Nebraska minimum wage details ↗ Keep your own record to compare: the time card calculator totals your week with Nebraska's rules and saves a PDF.
| State | Meal break | Rest breaks | Overtime |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nebraska | A 30-minute lunch break only in assembling plants, workshops and mechanical establishments | None required | Weekly, 40 h |
| Colorado | A 30-minute duty-free meal break for shifts over 5 hours | A paid 10-minute rest break for every 4 hours | Daily + weekly |
| Iowa | None required | None required | Weekly, 40 h |
| Kansas | None required | None required | 46 h/week* |
| Missouri | None required | None required | Weekly, 40 h |
| South Dakota | None required | None required | Weekly, 40 h |
| Wyoming | None required | None required | Weekly, 40 h |
* Kansas: only for jobs not covered by federal overtime law. See all 50 states and DC.
Every rule on this page was checked against the official source below; the quotes are verbatim and were found in the source on the date shown next to each rule. This page was last verified on October 25, 2026, the oldest of those dates. How we verify.