Florida meal and rest period law is located in the provisions below of the Florida Statutes. Administrative rules and executive orders are not covered here.

• 383.015 Breastfeeding
• 450.081 Hours of work in certain occupations for minors.

The breastfeeding of a baby is an important and basic act of nurture which must be encouraged in the interests of maternal and child health and family values, and in furtherance of this goal:

(1) A mother may breastfeed her baby in any location, public or private, where the mother is otherwise authorized to be, irrespective of whether the nipple of the mother's breast is uncovered during or incidental to the breastfeeding.

(2) A facility lawfully providing maternity services or newborn infant care may use the designation "baby-friendly" if it establishes a breastfeeding policy in accordance with s. 383.016.

383.016 Breastfeeding policy for "baby-friendly" facilities providing maternity services and newborn infant care.

A facility lawfully providing maternity services or newborn infant care may use the designation "baby-friendly" on its promotional materials if the facility has complied with at least 80 percent of the requirements developed by the Department of Health in accordance with UNICEF and World Health Organization baby-friendly hospital initiatives.

Title XXXI Labor Chapter 450
Sec. 450.081 Hours of work in certain occupations.

(1)

(a) Minors 15 years of age or younger shall not be employed, permitted, or suffered to work before 7 a.m. or after 7 p.m. when school is scheduled the following day or for more than 15 hours in any one week. On any school day, minors 15 years of age or younger who are not enrolled in a career education program shall not be gainfully employed for more than 3 hours, unless there is no session of school the following day.

(b) During holidays and summer vacations, minors 15 years of age or younger shall not be employed, permitted, or suffered to work before 7 a.m. or after 9 p.m., for more than 8 hours in any one day, or for more than 40 hours in any one week.

(2) Minors 16 and 17 years of age shall not be employed, permitted, or suffered to work before 6:30 a.m. or after 11:00 p.m. or for more than 8 hours in any one day when school is scheduled the following day. When school is in session, minors 16 and 17 years of age shall not work more than 30 hours in any one week. On any school day, minors 16 and 17 years of age who are not enrolled in a career education program shall not be gainfully employed during school hours.

(3) Minors 17 years of age or younger shall not be employed, permitted, or suffered to work in any gainful occupation for more than 6 consecutive days in any one week.

(4) Minors 17 years of age or younger shall not be employed, permitted, or suffered to work for more than 4 hours continuously without an interval of at least 30 minutes for a meal period; and for the purposes of this law, no period of less than 30 minutes shall be deemed to interrupt a continuous period of work.

(5) The provisions of subsections (1)-(4) shall not apply to:

(a) Minors 16 and 17 years of age who have graduated from high school or received a high school equivalency diploma.

(b) Minors who are within the compulsory school attendance age limit who hold a valid certificate of exemption issued by the school superintendent or his or her designee pursuant to the provisions of s. 1003.21(3).

(c) Minors enrolled in a public educational institution who qualify on a hardship basis such as economic necessity or family emergency. Such determination shall be made by the school superintendent or his or her designee, and a waiver of hours shall be issued to the minor and the employer. The form and contents thereof shall be prescribed by the department.

(d) Children in domestic service in private homes, children employed by their parents, or pages in the Florida Legislature.

(6) The presence of any minor in any place of employment during working hours shall be prima facie evidence of his or her employment therein.

Sec. 450.141. Employer violations of meal period requirement for minors.

(1) Whoever violates any provisions of this law, or employs or permits or suffers any minor to be employed or to work in violation of this law, or of any order issued under the provisions of this law, or obstructs persons authorized under this law in the inspection of places of employment, and whoever, having under his or her control any minor, permits the minor to be employed or to work in violation of this law, shall for such offense be guilty of a misdemeanor of the second degree, punishable as provided in section 775.082 or section 775.083. Each day during which any violation of this law continues shall constitute a separate and distinct offense, and the employment of any minor in violation of the law shall, with respect to each minor so employed, constitute a separate and distinct offense.

(2) Any person, firm, corporation, or governmental agency, or agent thereof, that has employed minors in violation of this part, or any rule adopted pursuant thereto, may be subject by the department to fines not to exceed $2,500 per offense. The department shall adopt, by rule, disciplinary guidelines specifying a meaningful range of designated penalties based upon the severity and repetition of the offenses, and which distinguish minor violations from those which endanger a minor's health and safety.

(3) If the department has reasonable grounds for believing there has been a violation of this part or any rule adopted pursuant thereto, it shall give written notice to the person alleged to be in violation. Such notice shall include the provision or rule alleged to be violated, the facts alleged to constitute such violation, and requirements for remedial action within a time specified in the notice. No fine may be levied unless the person alleged to be in violation fails to take remedial action within the time specified in the notice.