Manager accuses retail employee of "stealing" for taking a full 30-minute lunch break instead of only taking 20 minutes: 'I told her if it’s unpaid, that time is mine.'

Are those ten minutes really so valuable to the company?

Some companies are extremely strict about their employees taking their breaks, especially when those employees are under 18. I remember when I was a minor working 8-hour shifts; my company did not mess around about me taking my mandatory 30-minute breaks between the four-hour shifts. Perhaps this was because they had previously been entangled in controversy over child labor laws. Maybe they gave us this break because they really like us personally. Whatever the reason, I was thrilled to have 30 whole minutes to sit at the bar, eat some food, and scroll on my phone before the worst of the dinner rush. 

Breaks can be a touchy subject among management, because they know it appears uncouth to take them away, but they don't like seeing their employees sitting around doing nothing when they could be sweeping or stocking shelves. Some companies do not recognize the importance and value of regularly scheduled breaks for their workers. A consistent break could be all that's keeping them from quitting, because if they had to work 8 hours without stopping, they'd be too burned out to continue at the expected pace.