Employees that work for more than 6 hours without a 30 minute unpaid break are paid an extra 50% of their ordinary hourly rate. This is paid until they get their break.

Example

Gino worked from 8am to 5pm on a Monday. He took a break at 2.30pm.

Between 2pm and 2.30pm, Gino gets paid:

• his ordinary hourly rate.
• an extra 50% of his ordinary hourly rate.

For his other hours he’s paid his ordinary hourly rate.

Does the missed meal break penalty rate apply at the same time as other penalty rates?

Yes. The missed meal break penalty rate can apply at the same time as:

• late night or early morning penalty rates
• weekend penalty rates; or
• public holiday penalty rates.

Example

Claire is a part-time employee. On Thursday she worked for 7 hours without a meal break. Her shift finished at 8pm.

For the first 6 hours Claire gets paid her ordinary hourly rate.

For the last hour of her shift Claire is paid:

• her ordinary hourly rate
• an extra 50% of her ordinary hourly rate because she missed her break
• the late night penalty rate.

Do casuals get their casual loading as well as the missed meal break penalty?

Yes. The casual loading and the missed meal break penalty are both calculated on the ordinary hourly rate.

Give us feedback on this article

Use our Feedback form to give us feedback about the information in this article.

If you have a question about pay or entitlements or need our help with a workplace issue, you can submit an online enquiry.