Case study · Live
California Break Calculator
Takes a shift's start time, end time, and unpaid meal-break minutes and determines the meal and rest breaks an employee was legally owed — flagging violations and estimating premiums.
Problem
Meal and rest break rules depend on exactly how long a shift runs, and unpaid premiums are owed when an employer falls short. Most workers can’t tell whether they were shorted.
Solution
Given a shift’s start time, end time, and unpaid meal-break minutes, the calculator determines the meal and rest breaks legally owed, flags whether the employer met those requirements, and estimates any premium owed — typically one hour of regular pay per type of violation.
Approach
- Time-interval logic in JavaScript translating shift length into break entitlements.
- PHP for shared rule definitions across the calculator suite.
- Accessible, mobile-first form design.
Result
Ranks #1 on Google for “California break calculator.”