What is a split shift?
A workday split into two parts with a long unpaid gap between them, such as a lunch service and a dinner service.
Restaurants, school transport and home care use split shifts to cover two peaks without paying for the quiet hours. Hours are the sum of both parts; the gap is not work time if the employee is free to leave and use it for their own purposes.
Some states require extra pay for split shifts (California adds one hour at minimum wage in some cases), so record both parts of the day separately rather than one long shift with a break.
Related terms
- Clopening (rest between shifts)Scheduling the same person to close one night and open the next morning, leaving a short rest between shifts.
- Meal and rest breaksFederally, short rest breaks (usually 20 minutes or less) are paid working time; bona fide meal periods (typically 30 minutes or more, fully relieved of duty) can be unpaid.
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