Nevada Labor Law Breaks
According to Nevada labor rules, if an employee works a continuous eight-hour shift, they must be given a meal break that lasts at least thirty minutes. Employers are required to give workers a minimum of ten (10) minutes of rest for every four (4) hours worked, or a significant portion thereof. Employees working fewer than three and a half (31/2) hours are not entitled to a break from work. You have to pay for the break. Nevada Law 608.019.
Nevada Payment Laws
In Nevada, employers are only required to pay their employees for the amount of time worked. No state law currently exists that requires employers to pay employees for time not worked. This includes time off. The United States also does not have a federal law mandating employers for this kind of payment. However, employers may pay their employees for time off, if they so choose. The law states that if an employer states in a written contract that he or she will pay an employee for time off, then he or she is required by law to do so.
If a policy exists and the employer chooses not to provide the payment, then the Department of Labor may enforce the policy on the employee’s behalf. Some other states do not allow the Department of Labor to assist and will require employees to handle the situation themselves.
There currently is no federal law or Nevada state law that requires employers to pay employees for any unused vacation time upon termination. Companies and policies may have written policies requiring unused vacation pay to be paid and are thus required by law to provide this service. If an employer provides favoritism or is inconsistent in his or her handling of payment, he or she can be served with a lawsuit on illegal discrimination charges.
Sick Leave Payment
Similar to paid time off, neither the federal government nor the Nevada state government requires employers to pay employees for sick leave. Many businesses and companies have policies to require employees to be paid for being ill. Companies often do this to protect employee incomes and those who are too sick to come to work. Union contracts may also require that companies or businesses provide sick leave payment, despite company policy.
Under federal law and Nevada state law employers are also not required to inform employees of company policy changes. This means that if an employer chooses to no longer provide sick leave payment or paid time off, he or she is legally able to do so without prior notice. However many employers do previously inform employees of these changes before instituting new policies.
Because sick leave is often abused in so many companies, many employers have chosen to provide paid time off. To discourage employees from using sick leave for mental health days, paid time off allows employees to take time off for whatever reason and still be paid. Paid time off includes sick leave. Underpaid time off each employee is given a specific number of allotted days per month that he or she may use at will. However, once these days have been used no other sick days can be provided.
Family and Medical Leave
Along with paid time off employees are also allowed up to twelve weeks of unpaid leave for family or medical purposes. This leave must be used in a row. The federal Family and Medical Leave Act requires employers to provide leave and allow employees their same occupation, or one of the same benefits and salary, upon return. Under this act, employers are not legally allowed to terminate an employee on leave for the necessity of taking leave.
