Meal and rest breaks · Canada
Meal and rest breaks by province.
The break an employee must get during a shift, the number of hours before it is due and whether it is paid, for each jurisdiction where the statute or the government’s own guide states a rule.
Most jurisdictions require an unpaid 30-minute break within every 5 consecutive hours. Newfoundland and Labrador requires one hour, and Alberta ties the number of breaks to shift length.
Choose your jurisdiction
Meal and Rest Breaks, jurisdiction by jurisdiction
| Jurisdiction | At a glance |
|---|---|
| Quebec | 30 minutes after 5 consecutive hours |
| British Columbia | 30 minutes; never more than 5 consecutive hours without one |
| Alberta | One 30-minute break over 5 hours; two at 10 hours or more |
| Manitoba | 30 minutes after every 5 consecutive hours |
| Saskatchewan | 30 minutes within every 5 hours |
| Nova Scotia | 30 minutes; never more than 5 consecutive hours without a break |
| Prince Edward Island | 30 minutes at intervals of no more than 5 hours |
| Newfoundland and Labrador | 1 hour after each 5 consecutive hours |
| Northwest Territories | 30 minutes after 5 continuous hours |
| Nunavut | 30 minutes after 5 consecutive hours |
| Federal | 30 minutes during every 5 consecutive hours |
Not covered on this page
- Ontario has its own calculator: /employment/ontario-meal-break-calculator.html.
- New Brunswick: the Employment Standards Act has no break provision and the Occupational Health and Safety Act text read did not contain one, so no figure is given.
- Yukon: yukon.ca and laws.yukon.ca refused automated access on 19 October 2026 (a Cloudflare challenge on every request), so no Yukon figure is published here.
Sources: each jurisdiction’s own employment standards Act or government guide, read directly 19 October 2026. The exact pages are linked on each jurisdiction’s page.
Frequently asked questions
Is 30 minutes the standard everywhere?
Nearly. Quebec, British Columbia, Alberta, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, the Northwest Territories, Nunavut and federal work all use a 30-minute break. Newfoundland and Labrador is the exception at one hour for each five consecutive hours, as set out in section 24 of its Labour Standards Act.
Are meal breaks paid?
Generally not. Quebec, British Columbia, Saskatchewan, Nova Scotia, Newfoundland and Labrador, the Northwest Territories and federal work say the time is paid, or counts as time worked, when the employee must stay on duty, stay available or stay at the workstation. Alberta lets the employer choose whether to pay, unless it restricts what the employee may do during the break, such as leaving the premises, in which case the break must be paid.
What about Ontario?
Ontario has its own meal break calculator on this site, so it is not repeated here.
Reference only — not legal advice
This page states the statutory meal and rest break entitlement from the published employment-standards legislation or the government’s own guide, read on 19 October 2026. It is not legal advice, does not model a collective agreement or an individual contract, and rules change. For a binding answer, contact the employment standards office named in the source or a lawyer.