Employee Breaks

MEALTIME BREAKS

California law requires that all non-exempt employees must take a 30-minute, unpaid meal break each day when working more than five hours in a day. This lunch break must be taken within the first 5 hours of work performed starting from the minute that you punch in on the time clock upon arrival. Such non-exempt employees may not skip the meal break, and working through your meal break does not entitle you to leave work early or arrive late. Employees are permitted to leave the premises while on a meal break; however, any additional time spent on break over and above the allowed 30 minutes is not paid time, and any violations of the meal break time limit may subject the employee to attendance incidents and/or disciplinary action.

Non-exempt employees on break should not be informed of or requested to answer any work-related information and while on break are not permitted to read or respond to work related emails or calls that they may receive on their cell phone, laptop, or tablet. Any employee who violates this policy is subject to disciplinary action leading up to and including termination.

The official range of time for employees to take their lunch breaks is from 12:00pm to 3:00pm. Employees must take a lunch break no later than 5 hours after clocking in upon arrival, meaning your break must start before 2:59pm when you clock in at work at exactly 10am. If you clock in early at 9:50am your break must start before 2:49pm.

During Christmas, if you clock in at 11:00am your break must start before 3:59pm. If you clock in at 10:50am your break must start before 3:49pm.

NEW AS OF 2025: Due to tightening of the State employment laws, and on advice of the corporate attorney, it is now necessary for employees to physically clock out and back in to record their lunch breaks and not just write the times on their timecards. Each non-exempt employee must clock out for the daily lunch period and clock back in when the lunch period is over.

Late Return from Breaks: There is a 5 minute leeway for clocking back in from the lunch break. Please do not clock in any sooner than 30 minutes after you clocked out. Employees who are more than 5 minutes late to return from a lunch break will earn one-half (1/2) incident.

TIMECARD: You will receive a printed timecard on Friday each week showing all your clock in and out times. Please review carefully and notify the HR Department of any issues. Each employee must sign the bottom of the timecard before turning it in by close of business on Fridays for payroll processing.

IF YOU WORK FEWER THAN 6 HOURS

When working fewer than 6 hours in a day, for example coming in late or leaving early, there is no required lunch break. You can work up to 6 hours without a lunch break in California if both you and your employer mutually agree to waive it. You may also take your lunch break if you prefer. If you want to waive your lunch break, please notify HR by email.

FAILURE TO TAKE LUNCH BREAK OR CLOCK OUT & IN

Persistent failure to take a 30-minute lunch break, failure to clock out and in from that break, or reporting falsehoods about those breaks, may result in disciplinary action up to and including termination. The Company takes employment law very seriously and must insist that all employees follow the letter of the law at all times.

WHAT DO I DO IF I FORGOT TO CLOCK OUT OR IN FOR MY LUNCH BREAK?

Please notify HR right away by sending an email to tell them you missed clocking out or in, and what time you clocked out or in. HR will verify the times with video from the camera by the time clock.

REMINDER TO TAKE LUNCH BREAK

Email reminders will no longer be sent out at 2:00pm asking if you have taken your lunch break yet. That does not excuse you from remembering to take your break by the end of the 5th hour of clocking in.

15-MINUTE REST BREAKS

California law requires that all non-exempt employees will receive one, 10-minute uninterrupted paid break for every four hours worked. Leo Hamel Fine Jewelers policy is to allow 15-minute paid breaks instead of 10-minute breaks. Non-exempt employees on break should not be informed of or requested to answer any work-related information and while on break are not permitted to read or respond to work related emails or calls that they may receive on their cell phone, laptop, or tablet. Any employee who violates this policy is subject to disciplinary action leading up to and including termination.

Generally, breaks should be taken as close to the middle of the 4-hour work period as is possible. Employees are permitted to leave the premises while on break; however, any additional time over the 15 minutes that is taken is not paid time, and any violations of the break time limit may subject the employee to disciplinary action. Employees may not combine their breaks with each other or with the meal break. You may voluntarily waive your 15-minutes break(s); however, working through your rest periods does not entitle you to leave work early or arrive late.

Because breaks should be taken in the middle of the work period rather than at the beginning or end, no breaks are permitted during the first hour of your work schedule or during the last hour of your work schedule. An exception to this rule may be invoked during the last 2 weeks before Christmas. Contact your HR Administrator for details.

Late Return from Breaks: Employees who are late to return from any 15-minute break will earn one-half (1/2) incident.

It is not necessary to clock out and in for a 15-minute break nor to record the time the break was taken.

Employees who are on break are asked to not disturb employees who are not on break so as not to interrupt their workflow, and instead to direct their conversation and comments to those who are also on break at the same time. Breaks are not to be taken in the work areas; instead, employees on break should leave the premises or go to the break room.

Employees who work in the same department should confer with the department supervisor before taking their break at the same time, so as not to leave the department understaffed.

EXEMPT EMPLOYEES

Exempt employees are not subject to the laws regarding either meal breaks or paid breaks. However, as a company policy, exempt employees should not take more than a 15-minute break in the morning and afternoon, or more than 30 minutes for lunch, unless there is a business purpose for taking a longer lunch (lunch with a vendor or customer for example).

ESTATE BUYERS

Since there are no official break rooms in the buy offices, estate buyers will indicate when they are on a break by displaying the official “On Break” signs on their desks that are available in each buy office. When going on 30-minute lunch break, estate buyers may lock the doors and put a sign on the door that says, “Back at ___:00.” If you do not have this sign, contact Logistics to order it for you.

INFORM RECEPTION IF YOU LEAVE THE BUILDING:

Employees from the following departments must inform Reception if you leave the building on a break or for any reason: Sales, Repair, Inventory, Estate Buyers, HR/Administrative. This will save Reception from wasting time looking for you if you are not in the building. Non-exempt employees should not be called on their cell phones if they are out of the building on break for anything work related.

NO EMPLOYEES IN OR OUT OF THE BUY OFFICE OR SHOWROOM DOOR AFTER WE OPEN

We don’t want employees walking in and out of the buy office door when customers are waiting to be seen, since it could make the customer feel as though they being ignored by employees. And coming in or out of the showroom door can cause unnecessary commotion. When leaving for or coming back from breaks or appointments, please always use the back-door downstairs.

One exception is for salespeople, assistants, and the receptionist, who are allowed to enter and exit from the showroom door as a matter of practicality, and executives who may enter or exit from different doors at different times.