Break Policies tell BuyerKiosk how to decide whether each break an employee takes is paid or unpaid — and whether a missed, late, or short break should be flagged as a compliance issue. Pick a preset that matches your state's labor law (or use the FLSA default), and the system handles the classification automatically. No more asking employees to choose "paid" vs. "unpaid" at clock-out.

![Break Policy page showing the California 2025 preset, Default Break Type card, and four break rules](/images/support/articles/break_policy_overview.png)

*The Break Policy page for a California store: preset header, default-break-type fallback, and the four California rules listed in priority order.*

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## Getting There

Navigate to **Store Settings** > **Break Policy** from the admin sidebar, or go directly to `/admin/{storeCode}/scheduling/break-policy`.

You need the `uri_schedule_manage` permission to view or edit Break Policy.

> **Note:** If your store uses **When I Work** for scheduling, the policy engine is currently disabled for you — When I Work owns break classification for integrated stores. Native BuyerKiosk scheduling stores see the full feature.

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## What's on the Page

| Area | Purpose |
|------|---------|
| **Preset header** | Shows your current preset name and version, with the `Change Preset` button |
| **Default Break Type** | Fallback classification (Unpaid / Paid) for breaks that don't match any rule |
| **Break Rules** | The ordered list of rules that decide paid/unpaid, late/short flags, and required-break compliance |

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## Presets at a Glance

A preset is a complete set of break rules tuned to a specific labor jurisdiction. BuyerKiosk ships seven v1 presets:

| Preset | Use it when… |
|--------|--------------|
| **FLSA Default (Federal)** | You're in a state with no specific break law (TX, FL, GA, and most others). Replicates federal-only rules. |
| **California 2025** | Your store is in CA. 10-min paid rest per 4h, 30-min unpaid meal after 5h (must start by hour 5), 2nd meal after 10h. |
| **New York 2025** | Your store is in NY. 30-min meal ≥6h spanning 11:00–14:00; extra 20-min meal if a shift continues past 19:00. |
| **Oregon 2025** | Your store is in OR. 10-min paid rest per 4h; 30-min unpaid meal >6h. |
| **Washington 2025** | Your store is in WA. 10-min paid rest per 4h; 30-min unpaid meal >5h, scheduled within hours 2–5. |
| **Colorado 2025** | Your store is in CO. 10-min paid rest per 4h; 30-min unpaid meal >5h. |
| **Illinois 2025** | Your store is in IL. 20-min unpaid meal ≥7.5h, taken within the first 5 hours of the shift. |

> **Tip:** Not sure which preset to pick? When in doubt, start with **FLSA Default** — it exactly replicates BuyerKiosk's pre-2026 behavior. You can switch to a state preset any time without losing data.

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## Changing Your Preset

Click `Change Preset` (top-right of the page) to open the preset picker.

![Change Break Policy Preset modal listing all seven presets with one-line summaries](/images/support/articles/break_policy_change_preset.png)

*Each preset shows a one-line summary of its rules so you can compare at a glance. Your current preset is tagged with a blue **Current** badge.*

1. Pick a preset from the list.
2. Confirm the change — your rules are cloned from the selected preset.
3. The new rules take effect immediately on the next punch processed.

> **Warning:** Switching presets overwrites any custom rule edits you've made (the system clones the preset's rules into your store). If you've customized rules and want to keep them, note them down before switching.

> **Note:** Adopting a preset **clones** its rules into your store. Future updates to that preset (e.g., a `CA-2026` release next year) **don't** silently change your rules — you'll see an "Update available" banner and explicitly opt in.

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## Default Break Type

This is the fallback classification used when a break doesn't match any rule (for example, a 12-minute break on a 4-hour shift when your preset has no rule for that case).

| Option | Effect |
|--------|--------|
| **Unpaid** | The break duration is subtracted from the employee's paid hours at clock-out. Matches BuyerKiosk's legacy behavior. |
| **Paid** | The break duration counts as paid time. Useful for stores that pay all short breaks. |

The setting saves immediately when you click a radio button.

> **Tip:** Leave this set to **Unpaid** unless your store's policy is explicitly to pay all unclassified breaks. The FLSA Cutoff rule (which automatically pays any break under 20 minutes) is the more common way to make short breaks paid.

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## Reading the Break Rules Table

Rules are evaluated **in priority order** (lowest number first). The first matching rule wins. The FLSA Cutoff rule at priority 100 is a final safety net — any break shorter than its threshold is treated as paid.

| Column | What it means |
|--------|---------------|
| **Priority** | The order rules are checked. Lower = checked first. |
| **Type** | The rule's category badge: `Rest Break`, `Meal Break`, `2nd Meal`, `FLSA Cutoff`, or `Auto-Deduct`. |
| **Trigger** | When this rule applies — typically a shift-length threshold (e.g., `Shift > 5h`) and optionally a "must start before hour X" constraint. |
| **Duration** | The break length (in minutes) that satisfies this rule. Shorter breaks count as a `Short Meal` violation. |
| **Pay** | `Paid` (counts as worked time) or `Unpaid` (subtracted from paid hours). |
| **Required** | `Yes` means a violation is logged if the employee never takes a break of this type during a qualifying shift. |
| **Premium Pay** | Hours surfaced as a flag on the timesheet when the rule is violated. **Flag-only — nothing is added to payroll automatically.** Review the flagged shift and add the premium manually if your state law requires it. |

### How a break gets classified — step-by-step

1. Sort rules by priority (lowest first).
2. For each break, find the first rule whose `Trigger` matches the current shift length / time window / break duration.
3. Apply that rule's `Pay` setting.
4. If the rule has a "must start before hour X" constraint and the break started later, log a `Late Meal` violation.
5. If the break is shorter than the rule's `Duration`, log a `Short Meal` violation.
6. Any break shorter than the FLSA Cutoff's duration is forced to **Paid** as a final classifier (per FLSA's <20-min rule).
7. After the shift ends, any `Required = Yes` rule that didn't have a matching break logs a `Missing Meal` or `Missing Rest` violation.
8. Premium-pay hours from all violations are summed for the day.

---

## Editing a Rule

Click the pencil icon (Actions column) on any rule to open the rule editor.

![Edit Rule modal for Meal Break showing duration, trigger, must-start-by, paid/required toggles, and premium pay](/images/support/articles/break_policy_edit_rule.png)

*The Edit Rule modal for the California Meal Break: 30-minute duration, triggered by shifts >5h, must start before hour 5, unpaid, required, with 1 hour of premium pay flagged on violation.*

### Fields

| Field | What it controls |
|-------|------------------|
| **Duration (minutes)** | Minimum break length that counts as compliant. A 25-minute break against a 30-minute rule logs a `Short Meal` violation. |
| **Trigger: Shift hours >** | Minimum shift length for this rule to apply. Set to 5 to mean "shifts longer than 5 hours." |
| **Must start before hour of shift** | Optional. For meal rules that require the break to start within the first N hours. Late breaks log a `Late Meal` violation. |
| **Paid break** | Toggle. When on, break time counts as paid; when off, unpaid. |
| **Required** | Toggle. When on, a missing break of this type logs a `Missing Meal` / `Missing Rest` violation. |
| **Premium pay on violation (hours)** | Hours flagged on the timesheet when the rule is missed or taken late. **Not auto-paid** — surfaces as a flag for your manual review. |

Click `Save Changes` to commit. The change applies to all future punches immediately; historical timesheets aren't reclassified.

> **Tip:** Resist the urge to fine-tune rules unless your state law specifically requires it. The shipped presets are reviewed against current labor law — most stores never need to edit a rule.

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## "Update Available" — Yearly Refresh

Once a year, BuyerKiosk publishes new preset versions to reflect updated labor law (e.g., `CA-2026`). When that happens, you'll see an **Update available** banner on the Break Policy page for any affected preset.

1. Click the banner.
2. Review the diff preview — exactly which rules are changing, with old vs. new values shown side by side.
3. Confirm to adopt the new version. Your custom overrides are preserved where the field-level overrides allow.

The old version stays in place until you opt in — no surprise rule changes from a yearly release.

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## Where Violations Show Up

Once Break Policy is active, the policy engine logs violations to your store's compliance log. You'll see them in two places:

- **On the timesheet** — Days with a violation show a red Compliance indicator. The expanded row lists each violation and any premium-pay hours flagged for the day.
- **On the [Compliance Dashboard](/support/articles/compliance-dashboard)** — One screen for resolving and exporting all open violations across the store.

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## Troubleshooting

### The Break Policy page won't load
- Confirm you have the `uri_schedule_manage` permission. If not, ask your account owner to grant it.
- For When I Work integrated stores, the page may show a banner saying break policy isn't active for your store — that's expected.

### A break I expected to be paid showed up as unpaid (or vice versa)
- Open the Break Policy page and walk through the rules in priority order. The first matching rule wins.
- Check the **Default Break Type** — if no rule matched, the fallback determines the classification.
- Remember the FLSA Cutoff at priority 100: any break shorter than its duration (default 20 minutes) is forced to `Paid` regardless of other rules.

### "Premium pay" flagged but the employee wasn't paid extra
- That's intentional. Premium pay is **flag-only** in v1 — it's surfaced as a compliance flag for your manual review. Add the premium pay to the employee's timesheet manually if your state law requires it.

### I changed a rule but old timesheets still show the old classification
- Rule changes apply to **new punches only**. Historical timesheets aren't reclassified automatically. If you need to re-evaluate a historical period under your current policy, contact BuyerKiosk support.

### I switched presets and lost my custom edits
- Switching presets clones the new preset's rules in. Custom edits made to the old preset are overwritten. The "Update available" yearly-refresh flow (different from changing presets) preserves overrides where it can.

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## Related Articles

- [Compliance Dashboard](/support/articles/compliance-dashboard) — Review and resolve break violations across your store
- [Timesheets](/support/articles/timesheets) — How break classification shows up on payroll
- [Schedule Calendar](/support/articles/schedule-calendar)
- [Scheduling Settings](/support/articles/scheduling-settings)