45 Minutes or 1 Hour of Break? Japan's Labor Standards Act Article 34 and the 6-Hour Line

45 minutes or 1 hour: actual working hours decide

Article 34 of the Labor Standards Act sets the break that must be given according to the length of working time. The standard is the time you actually work (actual working hours), not your time at work.

What trips people up is the word "exceeding". Exactly 6 hours doesn't exceed 6 hours, so no break is needed, and 45 minutes is required from 6 hours 1 minute. Likewise, exactly 8 hours needs only 45 minutes, and 60 minutes is required from 8 hours 1 minute.

Overtime past 8 hours means adding to your break

An easily overlooked case is when overtime takes actual hours past 8. The required break depends on the time actually worked that day, so even unplanned overtime moves the standard.

Say a company has scheduled hours of 9:00 to 17:00 with a 45-minute break (7 hours 15 minutes actual), and you work overtime until 19:00. Actual hours become 9 hours 15 minutes, so a 60-minute break is required. The 45 minutes already given falls 15 minutes short, so an extra 15-minute break must be given.

As in rows 3 and 4, a shift that needed no break as scheduled can become one that does because of overtime. Take special care when short shifts get extended.

The 3 principles: mid-work, simultaneous and free use

Article 34 sets out not only the length of breaks but also 3 rules for how they're given.

• Mid-work: breaks must be given during working time. They can't be lumped together before starting or after finishing. Leaving early isn't a break.
• Simultaneous: as a rule, breaks are given to everyone at the workplace at the same time. With a labor-management agreement, they can be taken in turns, and transport, sales, finance, film and theater, communications, health care, hospitality and entertainment, and government offices are exempt without one.
• Free use: during a break, workers must be completely free from work. As a rule, the company can't dictate how break time is used.

Splitting a break isn't prohibited in itself. Dividing 45 minutes into 3 breaks of 15 minutes is lawful as long as the total meets the standard and the mid-work principle is followed. But chopping it so finely that it doesn't provide real rest may be judged contrary to the purpose of a break.

Time that isn't a break: on-call waiting

The dividing line between break and work is whether you can use the time freely. The following are working time in substance even if they're called breaks, and they count toward actual working hours.

• Answering phones or handling visitors during lunch (even on a rota)
• Eating while minding a shop (when you must serve any customers who come)
• Napping or standing by in case you're called
• Waiting time when you just have nothing to do at the moment (waiting for deliveries or your turn)
• Mandatory training, morning meetings and cleaning

When these are added to actual working hours, they can take you past the 8-hour line and create overtime. Put another way, whether recorded break time is truly free time directly affects your overtime pay.

As a rule, break time is unpaid (since you aren't working), unless the work rules provide paid breaks. If time is judged to be on-call waiting, it's working time, so wages naturally arise, and during late-night hours the late-night premium applies too.

Check by calculation whether your break is long enough

You can't judge whether a break is long enough until your actual hours are fixed. Enter your start time, end time and break in the Work Hours & Overtime Calculator, and it shows your actual hours along with the break required that day and any shortfall.

1. 1

   Enter your actual start time, end time and break

   For breaks, "45" means 45 minutes, and writing "0:45" reads the same way.

2. 2

   Check actual hours and the required break

   It shows 45 minutes as required when actual hours exceed 6 and 60 minutes when they exceed 8, along with any shortfall.

3. 3

   Check again including overtime

   Correcting the end time to when you actually finished after overtime may change the required break from 45 to 60 minutes. This is where you'll spot the 15 minutes to add.

4. 4

   Check a whole month

   Paste data into the Monthly total tab to get the month's total actual hours and breaks. It also makes days with a missing break easier to find.

For how to fit in breaks to stay focused, the Pomodoro Technique and time blocking are also useful. Calculating a day's actual hours and overtime is covered in how to calculate work hours.

FAQ

Do I need a 45-minute or a 1-hour break?

It depends on actual working hours: 45 minutes or more for over 6 up to 8 hours, and 60 minutes or more for over 8 hours. With 6 hours or less, no break is needed. For 9:00 to 18:00 with a 60-minute break, actual hours are 8, so 45 minutes would be enough, but most companies use a round 60 minutes in practice. The law sets only a minimum, so giving more is up to the employer.

Does a shift of exactly 6 hours need a break?

No. Article 34 of the Labor Standards Act requires a break when work exceeds 6 hours, so exactly 6 hours isn't covered. A 45-minute break is required from 6 hours 1 minute. Likewise, exactly 8 hours needs only 45 minutes, and 60 minutes is required from 8 hours 1 minute. The difference between "exceeding" and "or more" sets the boundary.

Must a break be added if overtime takes me past 8 hours?

Yes. The required break depends on the time actually worked that day, so if overtime takes actual hours past 8, a 60-minute break is required. At a company with 7 hours 15 minutes of actual scheduled work and a 45-minute break, 2 hours of overtime makes it 9 hours 15 minutes actual, so 60 minutes rather than 45 is required. The missing 15 minutes must be added.

Is answering phones during lunch a break?

No. A break requires complete freedom from work, so being expected to answer the phone or deal with visitors counts as on-call waiting and is working time, even on a rota. This time counts as actual hours and is paid, and if the day ends up exceeding 8 hours, an overtime premium also arises.

Can a break be split into 15-minute segments?

It's lawful as long as the total meets the standard and the breaks are given during working time. Dividing 45 minutes into 3 breaks of 15 minutes isn't prohibited. But chopping it so finely that it doesn't work as rest may be judged contrary to the purpose of a break. Lumping a break before starting or after finishing isn't allowed because it violates the mid-work principle.