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Employee lunch break: what are the rules?

Verified 18 February 2021 - Directorate for Legal and Administrative Information (Prime Minister)

The regulations do not provide for any specific obligations regarding the meridian pause. However, as soon as the daily working time reaches 6 hours, the employee must have a break of at least 20 consecutive minutes. The employer provides a place to eat. Lunch is not normally paid as it does not constitute actual working time. Of treaty provisions can set a minimum lunch break time.

During his working time, the employee is at the disposal of the employer and complies with his instructions without being able to freely go about personal activities.

However, the employer must give the employee a break for lunch.

The meridian break for lunch traditionally corresponds to the lunch time.

General case

As soon as the daily working time reaches 6 hours, the employee must have a break of at least 20 minutes consecutive.

The break shall be granted either immediately after six hours of work or before the six-hour period has expired.

A company or establishment agreement or agreement may fix a longer break time.

The lunch break is part of the legal break time. The law does not provide for a lunch break. The recovery period should be taken over the daily break time. The employer is therefore entitled to grant only 20 minutes of food breaks per day.

In practice, a longer cut-off is generally used (minimum 45 minutes of lunch break for example).

The employee may be forced to remain at his place of work during his lunch break.

Employee under 18 years

An employee under 18 years of age must have a break of at least 30 minutes after an uninterrupted period of work of 4 hours 30.

The lunch break is part of the legal break time. The law does not provide for a lunch break. The recovery period should be taken over the daily break time. The employer is therefore entitled to grant only 20 minutes of food breaks per day.

In practice, a longer cut-off is generally used (minimum 45 minutes of lunch break for example).

The employee may be forced to remain at his place of work during his lunch break.

In principle, it is forbidden for the employee to have a meal in a room assigned to work.

Depending on the number of employees who wish to take their lunch break in the company, a catering room can be set up.

Less than 50 employees

The employer shall provide employees with a place to eat in good health and safety conditions.

From 50 employees

The employer, after the Social and Economic Committee (ESC)provides employees with a catering room.

This room shall be equipped with the following:

  • Means of storing or refrigerating food and beverages
  • Plant for heating dishes
  • Drinking water tap, cool and hot, for 10 people
  • There are enough chairs and tables

After each meal, the employer must have the restaurant and its equipment cleaned.

Warning  

previously set at 25 employees, the threshold at which a catering room must be made available has now been set at 50 employees since 1er January 2020. Companies of 25 employees who had a room before this date are required to keep it until December 31, 2024.

During the break, the employee is not under the direction of his employer. The break is not normally paid, as it is not counted as a actual working time.

On the other hand, breaks must be remunerated if they fulfill the conditions for actual working time. This is particularly the case when the employee carries out a directive from his employer during his break. Example: when the employer waiting for a call asks an employee to watch the phone during his break. In this case, the salary is maintained and the break time is taken into account in the calculation of the remuneration.

Of treaty provisions more advantageous may apply. A company or establishment agreement or otherwise a branch agreement or agreement may provide that the break time shall be systematically remunerated. In the absence of an agreement, the applicable break time arrangements may be mentioned in the employment contract.

In the company

An accident occurring during a break taken at the workplace is considered to be a industrial accident.

This provision shall also apply where the accident takes place in the premises available to employees for catering.

Outside

If the employee is injured on the road between the workplace and the restaurant where he usually eats lunch, he will be considered to have been the victim of a commuting accident.

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