Can I be deducted for breaks?

Hello, thank you for reaching out.

The employee is entitled to at least one break when the daily working time exceeds five and a half hours. If the daily working time is eight hours or more, the total break time must be at least half an hour.

If the employee is required to remain at the workplace during the break, or if there is no suitable break room, the break must be counted as working time.

See our page about working hours and breaks here.

If you feel that the breaks you are given do not sufficiently meet your needs for rest and eating, you should bring this up with your employer or safety representative. If this doesn't help, you may consider reporting the matter to the Norwegian Labour Inspection Authority. If so, please use our tip form here.

There are no legal regulations on whether employees should be paid for breaks or not. Your employment contract should state whether breaks are paid. However, the law specifies when a break should be considered working time and when it is regarded as free time.

For breaks to count as free time, three conditions must be met:

• The employee has no duties during the break.
• The employee is free to leave the workplace during the break.
• The employee has access to a suitable break room. See our page on requirements for break rooms in the workplace.

If any of these conditions are not met, the employee’s break should be counted as working time. See Section 10-9 (1) of the Working Environment Act.

Although the Working Environment Act does not mention payment for breaks that are considered working time under the law, there are still arguments that the break should be paid. Typically, the employment contract entitles the employee to wages for work/working time. The employee may therefore argue that since the break is considered working time under the law, they expect to be paid for this time just as they are for regular working hours.

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