Security Guard Labor Laws in California: On-Call, Sleep Time and Breaks

Part of our California Labor Laws by Job library31 guides→

Under California security guard labor laws, time you spend on call at the post is generally paid work time, sleep time on a 24-hour shift generally cannot be deducted, and your rest breaks generally must be truly off duty, with no radio or phone duties. These rules come mainly from Industrial Welfare Commission Wage Order 4 and two California Supreme Court decisions about security officers.

Unpaid on-call and sleep hours add up fast because they often fall into overtime and double time. A guard earning $20 an hour who loses eight unpaid sleep hours on a single 24-hour shift may be owed up to $320 for that shift alone, and many guards work these posts every weekend.

This guide covers which wage rules apply to security officers, on-call and sleep time, on-duty meal periods, rest breaks, overtime, uniforms, equipment and guard card training, what you can recover, and what to do if you have not been paid correctly.

Which security guard labor laws apply in California

Most security officers employed by private patrol operators and contract security companies are covered by Wage Order 4, which governs professional, technical, clerical, mechanical and similar occupations. Guards hired directly by a hospital, hotel or other business may fall under that industry’s wage order instead. The core rules are similar across orders, but the details on sleep time and meal periods can differ, so it matters which order applies.

Almost all guards are nonexempt, meaning they are owed minimum wage for every hour worked, overtime, meal and rest breaks, and accurate pay stubs. A “site supervisor” or “account manager” title does not change that unless the job truly meets an exemption test, including the minimum salary of $70,304 a year in 2026. If you are paid a salary but spend most of your day doing guard work, read our guide on misclassified exempt employees.

California’s minimum wage is $16.90 an hour in 2026 and is scheduled to rise to $17.40 an hour on January 1, 2027, and many cities set higher local rates. Some cities also set higher rates for hotel and airport workers that can cover contract security guards, such as the Los Angeles hotel wage and the LAX living wage. Your employer must pay the highest rate that applies where you work; see our California minimum wage by city guide.

Hospital and clinic guards: the health care minimum wage

If you guard a hospital, clinic or other covered health care facility (state-run facilities excluded), a higher minimum wage may apply. California’s health care worker minimum wage law (Labor Code 1182.14, from SB 525) lists “guard” among covered jobs. If a security company signs your paycheck, you are generally still covered for your hours at the facility if the facility acts as a joint employer or you spend more than half of your workweek there. Rates depend on the type of facility:

Type of facility	July 1, 2025 – June 30, 2026	Starting July 1, 2026
Large health systems (10,000+ full-time employees), dialysis clinics, and facilities run by counties of more than 5 million people	$24	$25
Community, intermittent and rural health clinics, and urgent care clinics tied to them	$21	$22
Hospitals with a high share of Medicare and Medi-Cal patients, rural independent hospitals, and facilities run by small counties	$18.63	$19.28
All other covered facilities, including those run by mid-size counties	$21	$23

Most tiers keep rising to $25. If your city’s general minimum wage is higher, you generally get the higher rate.

Different rules for some union security officers

If you are a registered guard employed by a private patrol operator and covered by a union contract, some rules here may work differently. A qualifying contract that pays at least 30% above the state minimum wage and overtime premiums can replace the standard overtime rules (Labor Code 514) and, if it also provides for meal periods and binding arbitration, the meal period rules (Labor Code 512(e)). Through December 31, 2026, a qualifying contract can also let your employer keep you on call during rest breaks, but an interrupted break must be restarted (Labor Code 226.7(f)). If you have a union contract, get a copy and have it reviewed.

By the numbers24 hours

On-call time and 24-hour shifts

The leading case is Mendiola v. CPS Security Solutions (2015), a California Supreme Court decision about guards who lived in trailers at construction sites and were on call overnight and on weekends. The Court held that on-call hours spent at the worksite were hours worked under Wage Order 4, because the guards were required to stay on site, respond to alarms and disturbances, and could not use the time freely for their own purposes.

The test is control. Under Wage Order 4, “hours worked” means time during which you are subject to the employer’s control, whether or not you are actually working. Being required to stay at or near the post, to keep a radio on, or to respond within minutes points strongly toward paid time.

Situation	General rule	Source
On call at the post, required to stay on site	Hours worked; must be paid	Mendiola (2015); Wage Order 4
Sleeping on site during a 24-hour shift	No sleep-time deduction under Wage Order 4	Mendiola (2015)
Rest break with radio on, expected to respond	Generally not a valid rest break; premium owed (narrow union exception through 2026)	Augustus v. ABM (2016); Labor Code 226.7
On-duty meal period at a solo post	Allowed only with a written agreement and when the job truly requires it; paid time	Wage Order 4, section 11
On call from home with few restrictions	Depends on how restricted you are	Wage Order 4 control test

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Sleep time: no deductions under Wage Order 4

Some employers argue they can deduct eight hours of sleep from a 24-hour shift, borrowing a federal rule. The California Supreme Court rejected that argument in Mendiola. Wage Order 4 contains no sleep-time exclusion, and the federal rule does not apply, so guards covered by Wage Order 4 must generally be paid for the full 24 hours, minus only any bona fide, duty-free meal periods.

Because a 24-hour shift runs far past 8 and 12 hours in a workday, unpaid hours on these shifts are usually owed at overtime or double-time rates. That is why unpaid sleep time can add up to a significant claim for security officers.

💡 Example: Andre earns $20 an hour and works a 24-hour weekend post at a construction site, with no duty-free meal periods. His employer pays him for 16 hours and deducts 8 hours as “sleep time.” If his employer’s workday starts when his shift does, all 24 hours fall in one workday, so the 8 unpaid hours come after the 12th hour and are owed at double time: 8 × $40 = $320 for that one shift. If the shift crosses into a new workday, some of those hours may be owed at a lower rate. Over 25 weekend shifts, that could be up to $8,000 in unpaid wages before penalties.

Wage Order 5, which covers hotels and hospitals, allows sleep-time exclusions only for narrow groups such as ambulance crews, not security guards. Guards employed by a health care business may face a different “hours worked” definition, so ask a lawyer to look at your specific post.

Meal breaks and on-duty meal agreements

If you work more than five hours, California generally requires a 30-minute, duty-free meal period that starts no later than the end of your fifth hour, and a second one by the end of your tenth hour if you work more than 10 hours (Labor Code 512). Shorter shifts may allow a waiver. During a true meal period, you must be relieved of all duty and free to leave the post.

Security work is one of the few areas where an “on-duty” meal period is common. Under Wage Order 4, it is allowed only when the nature of the work prevents you from being relieved of all duty, such as a single guard at a post with no relief, and you have agreed in writing. The agreement must say you can revoke it in writing at any time. An on-duty meal period counts as time worked and must be paid.

Watch for these problems:

• You never signed an on-duty meal agreement, but you eat at the post anyway
• Relief is available, but the employer uses on-duty meals to save money
• Your timecard shows an unpaid 30-minute meal you never actually took
• You asked to revoke the agreement and nothing changed

Each workday with a non-compliant meal period can mean one additional hour of pay at your regular rate of compensation, which includes nondiscretionary pay such as shift differentials and bonuses, not just your base hourly wage (Labor Code 226.7). Our guide to meal and rest break premiums explains the math.

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Rest breaks: no on-call breaks

If you work at least 3½ hours in a day, you are entitled to a paid 10-minute rest break for every four hours worked, or major fraction of four hours (Wage Order 4, section 12). In Augustus v. ABM Security Services (2016), the California Supreme Court held that employers must relieve employees of all duties and give up control over how they spend their rest break. Requiring guards to keep radios or pagers on and stay ready to respond is generally not a valid rest period.

That means a guard who carries a radio during “breaks” and is expected to answer calls has likely missed every rest break, unless the temporary union-contract exception described above applies. The remedy is one additional hour of pay at your regular rate of compensation for each workday a rest break was not provided (Labor Code 226.7). That rate includes nondiscretionary pay such as shift differentials and bonuses, not just your base hourly wage.

💡 Example: Kim earns $22 an hour at a solo post, is not covered by a union contract, and must keep her radio on during every break. If $22 is her full regular rate, over 50 shifts she may be owed 50 × $22 = $1,100 in rest break premiums, separate from any meal period premiums.

By the numbersOne hour

Overtime, double time and long shifts

Security schedules often involve 10-, 12- and 16-hour shifts. Under Labor Code 510 and Wage Order 4, you are generally owed:

• Time and a half for hours over 8 in a workday or 40 in a workweek, and for the first 8 hours on the seventh consecutive day of work in a workweek
• Double time for hours over 12 in a workday and over 8 on the seventh consecutive day of work in a workweek

An employer generally can schedule you past 8 hours a day without daily overtime only under a qualifying union contract or a valid alternative workweek schedule. An alternative workweek must be disclosed in writing at least 14 days before a secret-ballot vote, approved by two-thirds of affected employees, and reported to the Department of Industrial Relations, and it generally cannot schedule more than 10 hours a day outside certain health care settings, so a 12-hour guard shift under an alternative workweek still includes overtime. Our guide on 12-hour shifts and alternative workweeks covers the requirements.

Don’t forget time before and after the shift: mandatory briefings, post changeovers, equipment checkout and waiting for relief that arrives late are generally work time because you are under your employer’s control, and California generally does not excuse a few unpaid minutes every shift. See our guide on off-the-clock work.

If you are sent home with less than half of a scheduled shift, you are generally owed reporting time pay for half the shift, at least 2 and no more than 4 hours. If an unpaid gap longer than a meal period splits your day, you may be owed a split-shift premium of one hour at the minimum wage, but pay above the minimum can offset it and it does not apply if you live at the worksite. See our guide on split shift and reporting time pay.

Working more than one post

Hours you work for the same employer generally count together for overtime, no matter how many sites you cover. Six hours at one site and four at another on the same day means two hours of overtime. Travel between posts during your shift is generally paid work time, unlike your ordinary commute, and if you drive your own car between posts, you may be owed mileage (Labor Code 2802).

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Uniforms, equipment and guard card training

When your employer requires a uniform, meaning clothing or accessories of a distinctive design or color, Wage Order 4 generally says the employer must provide and maintain it and cannot deduct for normal wear and tear. Plain basics such as dark pants and black shoes usually don’t count. Labor Code 2802 also requires reimbursement of necessary work expenses, which can include boots or gear your employer specifies, flashlights, and a reasonable share of your personal phone bill or car costs when you use them for the job. See our guide on expense reimbursement.

Under California’s Private Security Services Act, enforced by the Bureau of Security and Investigative Services (BSIS), you must complete power-to-arrest and use-of-force training, within the six months before you apply, before your guard card is issued. Under the current rules, you then generally must complete 32 hours of security officer skills training within six months after your registration is issued (16 of those hours within the first 30 days), plus 8 hours of continuing training every year. Starting January 1, 2027, if you have already finished the power-to-arrest course, you may be able to complete the skills training before your registration is issued.

For now, training your employer requires after you are hired, including annual continuing training, is generally work time that must be paid. Pre-hire training and course or license fees depend on the facts, so keep your receipts.

SB 1203 makes guard training paid time starting January 1, 2029. Skills training rises to 42 classroom hours (18 within the first 30 days) and annual training to 12 hours. If you work for the security company or have a pending offer from it, it must pay you for skills training time and cover its cost, and any employer you work for must pay you for annual training. Skills training may not be done while you are on duty at your post, and the rules do not apply to armored vehicle guards. Learn more in our guide to SB 1203 and paid security guard training.

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Other California rules that protect security guards

A few newer California rules also matter on many posts:

• Workplace violence prevention plans. Since July 1, 2024, most employers, including security companies, must have a written workplace violence prevention plan (Labor Code 6401.9, from SB 553). Your employer generally must train you on it every year, log violent incidents, and give you those records within 15 calendar days if you ask.
• Heat rules. Outdoor posts generally need shade above 80°F, and since July 23, 2024, indoor posts such as enclosed booths and gatehouses are covered at 82°F. You are entitled to water and cool-down rests of at least five minutes, and a denied heat recovery period can mean one extra hour of pay, like a missed rest break (Labor Code 226.7).
• Paid sick leave. You can generally use at least 40 hours or 5 days of paid sick leave a year, whichever is more, including for certain needs if you are a victim of violence, such as domestic violence, sexual assault, stalking or an assault.

What you can recover and how long you have

Security guard wage claims usually involve several overlapping remedies:

• Unpaid wages for on-call, sleep, pre-shift and post-shift time, at overtime or double-time rates where they apply
• Meal and rest break premiums, one hour per workday for each type
• Waiting-time penalties of up to 30 days’ wages if your employer willfully failed to pay everything you were owed, including unpaid break premiums, when you quit or were let go (Labor Code 203)
• Pay stub penalties for inaccurate wage statements, generally $50 for the first pay period and $100 for each later pay period, up to $4,000 (Labor Code 226); see our guide on pay stub requirements
• Interest, plus attorney’s fees and costs on many claims, such as unpaid minimum wage, overtime and pay stub claims, and in many cases PAGA civil penalties, often $100 per employee per pay period, with 35% going to the affected employees (Labor Code 218.6, 1194, 226, 2699)

Claims for unpaid wages, break premiums and waiting-time penalties generally must be brought within three years (Code of Civil Procedure 338; Labor Code 203), or four years for unpaid wages with an unfair competition claim (Business and Professions Code 17208). Pay stub penalties and PAGA notices generally have a one-year window (Code of Civil Procedure 340), and since mid-2024 you can bring a PAGA claim only for the types of violations you personally experienced. You can file with the Labor Commissioner or bring a lawsuit, or you may have to go to arbitration if you signed an arbitration agreement; our guide to a Labor Commissioner claim vs. hiring a lawyer compares the options.

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What to do if you weren’t paid correctly

1. Save your schedules and post orders. Post orders often prove you had to stay on site and respond, which is the heart of an on-call claim.
2. Keep your own time log. Note start and end times, on-call periods, breaks taken or missed, and any calls you answered during breaks.
3. Keep every pay stub. Compare hours paid with hours worked.
4. Request your records. Ask in writing for your payroll records (Labor Code 226), personnel file and training records (Labor Code 1198.5), and anything you signed, such as an on-duty meal agreement (Labor Code 432). Missing the 21- or 30-day deadlines can cost an employer a $750 penalty.
5. Revoke an on-duty meal agreement in writing if you want real meal breaks, and keep a copy.
6. Talk to a wage-and-hour lawyer. Security cases often involve many coworkers with the same schedule, which can support a class or PAGA action.

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Frequently asked questions

Do security guards get paid for sleep time in California?

Generally, yes, for guards covered by Wage Order 4. The California Supreme Court held in Mendiola that employers cannot deduct sleep time from 24-hour shifts under that order. Different rules may apply to guards in other industries.

Can my employer make me carry a radio during my break?

Generally, no. Under Augustus, rest breaks must be free of all duties, including being on call, and meal breaks must be duty-free unless you signed a valid on-duty meal agreement. If you must keep a radio on and respond, you may be owed one extra hour of pay for that day. Until January 1, 2027, some union guards of private patrol operators can be kept on call during rest breaks under a qualifying contract.

Is an on-duty meal period legal for security guards?

Only in limited situations. Under Wage Order 4, an on-duty meal period is allowed only when the nature of the work objectively prevents you from being relieved of all duty, such as a guard stationed alone at a remote site, and you agreed in writing. Working alone does not automatically qualify. You can revoke the agreement in writing at any time, and the on-duty meal must be paid.

Does my employer have to pay for my uniform?

Generally, yes, if a uniform of distinctive design or color is required, though plain basics such as dark pants may not count. Your employer must also reimburse other necessary work expenses under Labor Code 2802.

Are California security guard labor laws different for armed guards?

The wage rules are generally the same. Armed guards also need a BSIS firearms permit (requirements include being 21 or older, a firearms course, a written exam and range qualification), renewed every two years with four range requalifications. Training and range qualifications your employer requires after hire are generally paid time.

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Related guides

Are security guards paid for training in California?

Generally, yes, if your employer requires the training after you are hired, including annual training. Starting January 1, 2029, SB 1203 requires the security company to pay for your 42 hours of skills training time and its cost if you work for it or have a pending offer, and any employer you work for must pay you for annual training. It does not cover the pre-registration power-to-arrest course or armored vehicle guards.

Do security guards at hospitals get the health care minimum wage?

Often, yes. California’s health care minimum wage law covers guards at hospitals and many clinics, including contract guards if the facility acts as a joint employer or they spend more than half the workweek there. Since July 1, 2026, the rate is $19.28 to $25 an hour depending on the facility, or a higher local minimum wage if one applies.

Does on-call time count as hours worked for security guards?

Generally, yes, if you must stay at or near your post. Hours worked include any time under your employer’s control, and in Mendiola the California Supreme Court held that guards’ on-call hours at the worksite were hours worked. On call from home with few restrictions depends on how much you are limited.