Board may require mandatory rest breaks for licensees

The Minnesota Board of Pharmacy is proposing required 30-minute meal breaks for pharmacists and an additional 15-minute break for shifts longer than six hours, according to a December 16 report published by MPRNews. The proposal comes over concern that pharmacists may be working under unreasonable conditions without needed break time.

One example the report highlights is a pharmacist who told the board that she repeatedly became lightheaded on the job due to the inability to eat food or drink water. The pharmacist said she did not even have time to go to the bathroom because of busy work demands.

There is precedent for the Minnesota board’s proposal. A recent North Carolina regulation, ruled on by the Supreme Court, held that there is a correlation between making mistakes on the job and long work shifts without breaks.

A spokeswoman for the Minnesota Board of Pharmacy told PLR that the proposal has yet to go to an administrative law judge for a hearing.

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