Break Policies let you define the breaks team members should receive based on their scheduled shift. Deputy can automatically apply these breaks and validate them when a shift is saved, helping managers meet your break requirements when planning the Schedule.

Before you read

• Target audience: This article is for users with System Administrator access.
• Plan restrictions: This feature is available on all Deputy plans.

Note: Break Policies determine which breaks are scheduled and validate them against your configured requirements. They don't change how breaks are paid. Break pay continues to be determined by your existing pay rate configuration.

This article covers:

• What are Break Policies?
• How do Break Policies work when scheduling?
• Create a Break Policy from scratch
• Manage the rules in a Break Policy
• Edit, activate, or delete a Break Policy
• FAQs

What are Break Policies?

A Break Policy is a set of break requirements that you can apply to selected locations and areas. Within each policy, you can define the breaks team members should receive based on the length of their scheduled shift.

For example, you could create a rule that requires a team member working a shift of at least six hours to receive a 30-minute unpaid meal break and two 10-minute paid rest breaks.

A Break Policy can contain:

• Break rules: Define the breaks required when a shift reaches a specified length.
• Break windows: Control when a required break must start within the shift.
• Rule groups: Apply different break requirements to specific team members, such as team members under 18.
• Enforcement: Determine whether Deputy warns the manager about a break violation or prevents the shift from being saved.

You can create your own Break Policy or start with a pre-configured policy and change it to suit your requirements.

How do Break Policies work when scheduling?

When an active Break Policy applies to a scheduled shift, Deputy uses the shift's area, assigned team member, and duration to determine which breaks are required.

Break Policies work as follows:

• Adding a shift: The required breaks are automatically added when a manager creates a single shift on the Schedule.

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• Editing a shift: Deputy automatically updates the required breaks if the shift's area, assigned team member, or duration changes.

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• Saving a shift: Deputy validates the scheduled breaks against the applicable Break Policy when a manager creates or edits a single shift, and if the scheduled breaks don't meet the policy requirements, Deputy responds according to the enforcement setting:
  • Warn: Deputy displays a warning, allowing the manager to review the break details or continue and save the shift.
  • Block: Deputy prevents the shift from being saved until the break violation is corrected.

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Create a Break Policy from scratch

Deputy provides a range of pre-configured Break Policies to help you get started. If none of these suit your requirements, you can create a Break Policy from scratch and configure your own break rules.

To create a Break Policy from scratch:

1. If you are logged in as a System Administrator or Advisor, you can access Business Settings from the drop-down menu under your name.

   

2. Head to Scheduling, and under Break policies.

   

3. Select Create break policy to start with a blank policy.

   

4. Enter a Name, select the locations and areas under Applies to, then select Create policy.

   

5. Your Break Policy has now been created. New policies are inactive by default and don't contain any break rules. To start customising your policy, see Add and edit break rules below to start defining your break requirements.

   

Manage the rules in a Break Policy

You can add and manage break rules in a policy you've created from scratch, or use one of Deputy's pre-configured Break Policies as a starting point.

Pre-configured policies already contain break rules that you can review and edit to suit your requirements. Policies created from scratch don't contain any rules, so you'll need to add them yourself.

To manage a Break Policy:

1. If you are logged in as a System Administrator or Advisor, you can access Business Settings from the drop-down menu under your name.

   

2. Head to Scheduling, and under Break policies.

   

3. Select the Break Policy you want to edit.

   

4. From here, you can add or edit break rules, set break windows, choose how violations are enforced, create rule groups, and activate or deactivate policies.

   

Add and edit break rules

Break rules define the breaks a team member should receive when their scheduled shift reaches a specified length.

For example, a rule could require a 30-minute unpaid meal break when the shift length is at least six hours.

To add or edit a break rule:

1. In the Break Policy, select Add break rule, or select an existing rule to edit it.

   

2. Select whether the rule applies to shifts that are At least or More than a specified shift length.

   

3. Under Required breaks, select the Break type and Duration.

   

   • You can also tick Set break window to specify the earliest and latest times the break can start, measured in hours after the shift starts.

     

4. Select Add break to include any additional required breaks for that shift length.

   

5. Select Warn or Block to choose how Deputy handles break rule violations.
   • Warn: Deputy displays a warning, but the manager can review the break details or continue and save the shift.

   • Block: Deputy prevents the shift from being saved until the break violation is corrected.

     

6. Once you're done, select Save.

   

7. Repeat these steps for each shift-length threshold required by your policy.

   

Add and manage rule groups

Rule groups let you apply different break requirements to team members based on their age. For example, you can create a rule group for team members under 18 who require different breaks from other team members.

When you create a rule group, Deputy separates the policy's existing break rules into All others in this policy. These rules continue to apply to team members who don't meet the new group's age condition. You can then add separate break rules for the new group.

To add a rule group:

1. Open the Break Policy and select Add rule group.

   

2. Under When age is under, enter the age threshold, then select Add rule group.

   

3. The new rule group appears under Rules, with the existing break rules now listed under All others in this policy. Select Add break rule within the new group to define the breaks required for team members who meet the age condition.

   

Edit, activate, or delete a Break Policy

You can edit a Break Policy to change its name, the locations or areas it applies to, or its status. A Break Policy must be active before its rules apply when scheduling shifts.

Before activating a Break Policy, make sure:

• The policy contains at least one break rule.
• The policy is assigned to the required locations or areas.

To edit a Break Policy:

1. Open the Break Policy and select Edit under Policy details.

   

2. Under Edit policy details, you can do the following before selecting Save:
   • Policy name: Change the name of the Break Policy.
   • Areas: Select the locations or areas where the policy should apply.

   • Status: Select Active or Inactive to activate or deactivate the policy.

     

Delete a Break Policy

To permanently delete a Break Policy, open its Policy details, select Edit, then select Delete policy.

Deleting a Break Policy removes its configured rules. If you only want to stop the policy from applying when scheduling shifts, change its status to Inactive instead.

You can also activate, deactivate, or delete a Break Policy directly from the policy page or the ... menu in the Break Policies list.

FAQs

Does Break Policy change how breaks are paid?

No. Break Policies determine which breaks are scheduled and validate those breaks against the applicable policy. Your existing pay rate configuration continues to determine how breaks are paid.

What happens to shifts scheduled before a Break Policy is activated?

What happens if a team member works across locations with different Break Policies?

Can managers change a break that was automatically applied?