H. B. 4555


(By Delegates Stephens, Perdue, Marshall,

Hubbard, Tucker, Manchin and R. Thompson)

[Introduced February 20, 2002; referred to the

Committee on Industry and Labor, Economic Development and Small Business then the Judiciary.]



A BILL to amend and reenact section ten-a, article three, chapter twenty-one of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, relating to requiring rest periods for employees during each four hours of work.

Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That section ten-a, article three, chapter twenty-one of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 3. SAFETY AND WELFARE OF EMPLOYEES.
§21-3-10a. Meal and rest breaks.

During the course of a workday of six or more hours, all employers shall make available for each of their employees, at least twenty minutes for meal breaks, at times reasonably designated by the employer. This provision shall be required in all situations where employees are not afforded necessary breaks and/or permitted to eat lunch while working.
No employer may require any employee to work without a rest period of at least ten minutes during each four hours worked, except those employees who are under the Federal Railway Labor Act. The rest periods shall be in addition to the regularly scheduled lunch period. No reduction in compensation may be made in the pay of either hourly or salaried employees for the lunch and rest breaks provided in this section.

NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to provide that all employees be given a ten minute rest break during each four hours worked in addition to a regularly scheduled lunch break.

Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would be added.