California Labor Code 226.7, 512 and a number of Wage Orders of IWC (Industrial Welfare Commission) prohibit employers from employing a worker for more than five hours without a meal period of not less than 30 minutes, and from employing an employee for more than ten hours per day without providing a second meal period of not less than 30 minutes.
Section 226.7 and the applicable wage orders also require employers to provide employees ten minutes of net rest time per four hours or major fraction thereof of work, and to pay employees their full wages during those rest periods. Unless the employee is relieved of all duty during the 30-minute meal period and ten-minute rest period, the employee is considered "on duty" and the meal period is counted as time worked under the applicable wage orders.
Under section 226.7(b), and employer who fails to provide a required meal period must, as compensation, pay the employee one hour of pay at the employee's regular rate of compensation for each workday that the meal period was not provided. Similarly, an employer must pay an employee denied a required rest period one hour of pay at the employee's regular rate of pay for each workday that the rest period was not provided.
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