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Grantsville council tables proposed change to break-and-lunch policy after employee objections
Summary
After a string of written employee comments and extended discussion among department heads, the Grantsville City Council postponed consideration of ordinance 2025-19, which would stop employees from combining two paid 15-minute breaks with a 30-minute unpaid lunch. Council asked staff for employee polling and cost estimates before bringing the measure back.
Grantsville City Council members on April 23 paused action on a proposed ordinance that would prohibit employees from combining two paid 15-minute rest periods with a 30-minute unpaid lunch, citing the need for more employee input and a cost analysis.
Multiple city employees submitted written comments read into the record urging the council to preserve the current flexibility. Gina Roberts, Marie Anderson, Olivia Jeffries and Madison Wilson told council staff that combining breaks and lunch into a one-hour period helps them "decompress," improves productivity and reduces burnout, and that employees received only short notice about the proposed change.
"A longer uninterrupted break allows us to return refreshed and more productive for the remainder of the day," one employee letter said. Scott Stakely, a local business owner who spoke during public comment about unrelated development issues, also asked council to consider impacts on local businesses as staffing policies change.
Staff and several council members outlined the rationale for the change: department heads reported unequal break practices across divisions and operational concerns for field crews who work in extreme temperatures or must maintain continuous public service. City staff noted timekeeping and payroll complications created when employees clock out and back in for combined lunches, and a representative cited the Utah Department of Labor's general guidance that Utah does not require paid breaks for adult employees, while also noting the city provides breaks as a benefit.
Council members pressed for further information before voting. Concerns included: - fairness between 8-hour and 10-hour shift schedules (council discussion cited that 8-hour/day employees receive about 2.5 hours of paid breaks per week while 10-hour/day employees receive about 2.0 hours per week); - how supervisors would schedule breaks to maintain service coverage; - impacts on URS retirement records and payroll accuracy; and - the financial cost and potential effect on employee retention.
Several members recommended polling employees, collecting feedback from department heads, and estimating any budget impact before reconsidering the ordinance. The council did not adopt ordinance 2025-19 on April 23; members directed staff to gather more feedback and return the item at a later meeting.
