A Break Policy is a way to tell the Fingercheck platform when your employees go on an approved "break." It allows for various rules that can interact with that break time, such as whether or not to pay for it, how long it should be, if it should be automatically deducted even if the employee doesn't punch out for it, and more.
How to set up a Break Policy
Log in to your Fingercheck account as an Administrator.
Click the SETUP tab.
Select Policies > Break Policies.
The page lists any existing break policies for your company.To add a Break Policy, click Add.
A list of pre-defined break policies appears.
To add a pre-defined policy:
Click the policy's Add button.
Update the fields as needed, and click Continue.
Click OK.
To add a custom policy:
Click Add Custom.
Complete the fields, which are defined in the following section.
Click Save.
Attach the Break Policy to a Master Profile.
Go to Setup > System > Master Profiles.
Edit the profile you want, and enter the policy in the Break Policy field.
Fields for Break Policies
Fields for Break Policies
If click Add Custom or you want edit a Break Policy, enter information into the following fields to define the policy.
Details:
Code: An abbreviated name for the Break Policy. This, in combination with the Description field, determines the full name of the policy, as it will be displayed in other areas of Fingercheck. (Example: "BR")
Description: A descriptive name for the Break Policy. This, in combination with the Code field, determines the full name of the policy, as it will be displayed in other areas of Fingercheck. (Example: "Break")
Paid Break: When selected, this checkbox tells Fingercheck that any time towards this break should be paid for.
Allowed Hours: The minimum number of minutes (in decimal format) that a break should be. For example, 30 minutes is entered as 0.5. Any punch pair that is shorter than this setting will not be considered.
Allowed Break Type: Designates whether Allowed Hours should be totaled across a whole day (PerDay) or considered separately from each other (PerBreak).
Max Break (Minutes): The maximum number of minutes (in decimal format) that a break should be. For example, 30 minutes is entered as 0.5. Any punch pair that lasts longer than this setting will not be considered.
Max Break Type: Designates whether Max Break minutes should be totaled across a whole day (PerDay) or considered separately from each other (PerBreak).
Division Earnings: The Earning Code to use if the break is paid. Otherwise, leave this field blank.
Use Schedule: Select the Schedule Policy if you want the Break Policy to refer to a Schedule for break guidelines.
Effective Rule:
Start Date: The date when policy rules should come into effect.
End Date: The date when policy rules should stop being in effect.
Start Window: The time of the day in which policy rules should come into effect.
End Window: The time of the day in which policy rules should stop being in effect.
Active After Pair: If selected, the rule is active only after a punch pair (for example, for meals).
Active After Minutes: The number of minutes after which the rule is active.
Auto Break:
Automatic Break: If selected, the break should automatically apply after the conditions below are met.
Auto Break Type: Select whether automatic break should add or subtract time.
Auto Break Hours: Enter a number of hours (in decimal format) to add or subtract. For example, 30 minutes is entered as 0.5.
Auto Consecutive Type: Select the method in which consecutive hours should be calculated:
PerPair = Time between pair of punches.
PerDay = Triggers once per day if required number of hours are met.
PerConsecutiveHours = Triggers as many times as the blocks of required hours have passed.
Consecutive Hours: Number of hours to consider "worked consecutively."
Auto Break Earning: The Earning Code to use for automatic break hours.
Start Window: Start time from when to give automatic break hours.
End Window: End time from when to stop giving automatic break hours.
Qualifier Fewer Than Minutes: Policy is active only if the break is shorter than this number of minutes.
Qualifier More Than Minutes: Policy is active only if the break is longer than this number of minutes.
System Break Policies
Here are the pre-defined break policies available in the system. When adding a policy, you have the flexibility to adjust the hours and minutes to suit your specific requirements.
Paid break
Paid break
Employees are expected to clock out and clock back in, and they will be compensated for the break.
Paid: Yes
Requires clocking out: Yes
Unpaid break
Unpaid break
Employees are expected to clock out and clock back in, but they won't be compensated for the break.
Paid: No
Requires clocking out: Yes
Auto-Deduct
Auto-Deduct
Automatically deduct employees' unpaid meal breaks. Employees are not required to clock out.
Paid: No
Requires clocking out: No
Minimum hours requirement: Yes (Break policy only applies if the employee has worked a minimum specified number of hours on that day.)
Automatic break
Automatic break
Without having to clock out employees will have hours converted into break hours under a specific earning code.
Paid: Yes
Requires clocking out: No (Employees should not clock out)
Minimum hours requirement: Yes (Break policy only applies if the employee has worked a minimum specified number of hours on that day.)
Minimum Break
Minimum Break
Employees must either clock out and clock back in for their break or not clock out at all. Regardless of whether an employee clocks out for less than or more than the specified break duration or if the employee doesn't clock out at all, the system will still deduct the specified break time.
Paid: No
Requires clocking out: No (Employee's are allowed to clock out)
Minimum hours requirement: Yes (Break policy only applies if the employee has worked a minimum specified number of hours on that day.)
California meal break and rest
California meal break and rest
Under the California meal break law, non-exempt workers are entitled to an unpaid 30-minute meal break for every 5 hours of continuous work in a day and a paid 10-minute rest break for every 4 hours of work. Employees are expected to clock out.
Paid: Partially (rest break is paid, meal break is unpaid)
Requires clocking out: Yes
Advanced Break Policies (Custom)
Paid Automatic Break
Paid Automatic Break
Break Policy Details:
Employees must adhere to one of two options for their break: either clock out and clock back in or not clock out at all. If an employee clocks out for a duration that is shorter or longer than the specified break time, the system will only compensate for the specified break duration, respectively. In cases where the employee fails to clock out for the break, the system will convert the specified break duration accordingly and pay it as a break.
Setting up the Break Policy:
Feel free to enter whatever codes and descriptions work best for you, we used PWR - Paid Wash Rule as a placeholder.
To implement this break policy, follow these steps:
Access the setup menu and navigate to "Policies."
Click on "Break Policies" and select "Add" to create a new policy, click on Add Custom.
Provide the following details for the break policy:
Code: PWR
Description: Paid Wash Rule
Paid Break: Checked
Allowed Hours: 0.5 (Modify this number according to your specific requirements)
Allowed Break Type: PerDay
Max Break (Minutes): Set your preferred duration
Max Break Type: PerDay
Division Earning: None
Auto Break:
Automatic Break: Checked
Auto Break Type: AutoDeduct
Auto Break Hours: 0.5 (Modify this number according to your specific requirements)
Auto Consecutive Type: PerDay
Consecutive Hours: 6 (Modify this number according to your specific requirements)
Proceed to "Premium Policies" under the setup menu and select "Add" to create a new premium policy.
Provide the following details for the premium policy:
Code: PWR
Description: Paid Wash Rule
Premium rules: Only edit the below
Click on "Add" to specify the premium type as "Hours Based."
Set the sequence as 1.
Check off the days of the week: Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday.
Define the applicable time period:
Start Time: 12:00 AM
End Time: 11:59 PM
Min. Hours: 0.5 (Modify this number according to your specific requirements)
Max. Hours: 0.5 (Modify this number according to your specific requirements)
Active after daily Hours: 6 (Modify this number according to your specific requirements)
Enter a start and end date
Division Earning: Break
Earning Type: Break
Conclusion:
By implementing this break policy, you can ensure that your employees receive adequate rest during their workdays. The system will automatically allocate a 30-minute paid break when employees meet the minimum requirement of working 6 hours. Adjustments can be made to this number depending on
Breaks FAQ's
Do my paid break hours count towards the 40 hours worked that are counted towards overtime?
Do my paid break hours count towards the 40 hours worked that are counted towards overtime?
A: When you establish a break policy, you have the option to designate paid break hours with a "Break" earning code. Under this arrangement, the hours paid under the break earning code are not considered as worked hours, and therefore, they are not included in the calculation for overtime.
For instance (in the context of New York), if an employee works 8 hours per day, but takes a 30-minute paid break each day, they would need to "Work" an additional 2.5 hours before they start earning overtime. This is because the 2.5 hours of paid break time are not included in the overtime accumulation.
Can I have my paid break hours counted towards overtime?
Can I have my paid break hours counted towards overtime?
A: If you would like your paid break hours to be included in the calculation for overtime, you have the option to enable the "Include paid break" feature in your overtime policy setup. By enabling this setting, the hours spent on paid breaks will be considered as worked hours and will contribute towards the accumulation of overtime.
Thank you for using Fingercheck. If you have any questions on this article's topic, you can reach out to our team at 1-800-610-9501, or use the chat option below.