Arizona Labor Laws Guide

Ultimate Arizona labor law guide: minimum wage, overtime, break, leave, hiring, termination, and miscellaneous labor laws.

Arizona Labor Laws FAQ
Arizona minimum wages $14.70 per hour
Arizona overtime laws 1.5 times the regular wage for any time worked over 40 hours/week ($22.05 for minimum wage workers)
Arizona break laws Breaks not required by law
Arizona Labor Laws Guide

Minimum wage in Arizona in 2025

On January 1 of every calendar year, the minimum wage in Arizona rises due to the increased cost of living. Currently, Arizona’s minimum wage is $14.70 per hour.

Arizona’s Under 20 Minimum Wage (for employees under 20 years old) is $4.25 per hour for the first 90 days of employment.

In addition, the city of Flagstaff has a higher minimum wage than the state minimum: $17.85 per hour. The minimum wage for tipped employees in Flagstaff is $16.85 per hour.

ARIZONA MINIMUM WAGE
Regular minimum wage Tipped minimum wage Subminimum/Training wage
$14.70 $11.70 $4.25

Tipped minimum wage in Arizona in 2025

When it comes to tipped employees, the employer is allowed to pay them up to $3 less per hour than minimum wage, which amounts to $11.70 per hour in 2025. This applies only if the wage earned, along with the tip, amounts to the same sum as if they were paid a regular minimum wage. 

Additionally, according to Arizona state law concerning equal wage rates, variations in pay for the same position based on gender are prohibited. Both male and female workers should be paid an equal amount for the same position, as long as the quality and quantity of work are the same.

Exemptions to the minimum wage in Arizona

Employees in the following sectors are not required to be paid the minimum wage in the state of Arizona:

Moreover, the Fair Labor Standards Act includes additional exceptions, some of which are: 

🎓 FLSA Minimum Wage Exemptions

Arizona payment laws

According to the Arizona Office of Labor Law, employers must pay wages to their employees on set days, which is at least twice per month and no more than 16 days apart.

Payouts should happen within 7 days from the closing of the pay period during which the wages were earned. If the payday falls on a non-working day, the payment must be made on the workday before it.

Arizona labor hours

In Arizona, a workweek is defined as any 7 consecutive days.

By law, employees working fewer than 30 hours within a workweek or fewer than 130 hours within a month are considered part-time employees.

On the other hand, full-time employees work 40 hours within a workweek. However, according to the Affordable Care Act (ACA), full-time employment can be anything over 30 hours a week.

So, it’s important to check with your employer what they consider to be full-time hours before going over your pay and benefits.

🎓 Part-time vs. Full-time Employment: Understanding the Difference

Which hours worked are compensated in Arizona?

Aside from doing their regular work, employees should also be compensated for their time in specific instances.

Under Arizona labor and minimum wage laws, employers should compensate for the following:

The same laws also state that employers don’t need to compensate for:

Arizona overtime laws

The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) regulates overtime in Arizona. According to FLSA, anything over 40 weekly hours worked is considered overtime.

Unlike some states, which specify overtime with daily work hours (i.e., anything over 8 hours per workday), Arizona labor laws don’t have such regulations.

Regarding overtime rates, hourly employees are entitled to 1.5 times their hourly wage when they enter overtime.

According to the FLSA, certain types of employees are considered exempt from overtime pay, including:

🎓 Track Arizona overtime with Clockify

Arizona break laws

How breaks are regulated across the United States will vary from state to state. As Arizona has no state or federal laws regulating work breaks, most employers are free to design their own break laws, which become legitimate and lawful as employer policies. 

If an employer chooses to offer paid or unpaid breaks, any violations of the policy will result in some type of compensation.

Arizona work breaks

The number and length of breaks are wholly dependent on the employer, meaning the rules vary from one company to another.

However, the US Department of Labor has one guideline: Employers must pay for allbreaks under 20 minutes, while any breaks exceeding 30 minutes are unpaid. If employees must remain at their job post (e.g., factory workers), the break must be paid.

Arizona breastfeeding laws

Arizona doesn’t regulate breaks for breastfeeding mothers in the workplace specifically.

That means the federal laws apply, so the FLSA protects mothers who are non-exempt (hourly) employees.

According to federal law, employers have to provide breastfeeding mothers with a reasonable break period and a private room that meets the following conditions:

Mothers have the right to use this law for up to 1 year after the birth of a child.

Arizona leave requirements

The state of Arizona knows 2 types of leaves:

Employers are obligated to provide required leave to their employees, while non-required leave is not mandatory. However, certain employers choose to make it part of a collective bargaining agreement.

Below is a list of required and non-required leaves in Arizona:

TYPES OF LEAVES
✅ REQUIRED LEAVE

Sick and family leave — Under Arizona state law, employers are obligated to provide sick and family leave to their employees. It can be used in any illness-related case, be it the employees themselves or their close family members. Some situations that fall under paid sick leave include:

  • Caring for a family member with an illness (mental or physical) or a condition,
  • Recovery time for injuries,
  • Psychological counseling, and
  • Relocation, legal procedures, and recovery due to domestic violence, etc.

The law states that employees can earn paid sick leave, also known as sick leave accrual. The way sick leave hours are accumulated is based on 2 things:

  1. If the business has more than 15 employees, employees earn 1 hour of paid sick leave for every 30 hours worked, achieving a maximum of 40 leave hours throughout the year, and
  2. If the business has fewer than 15 employees, employees earn 1 hour of paid sick leave for every 30 hours worked, achieving a maximum of 24 leave hours throughout the year.
❌ NON-REQUIRED LEAVE

Holiday leave — Arizona law has no paid or unpaid holiday leave regulations. Furthermore, a private company can ask employees to work holidays without premium pay (i.e., a higher rate for working during the holidays). The only exceptions are employments that fall under FLSA and are eligible for overtime pay in these cases.

Conversely, all public offices must be closed on legal holidays recognized by the state of Arizona.

Note: For private employers, paid or unpaid holiday leave can be contractually negotiated during the hiring process.

✅ REQUIRED LEAVE

Jury duty leave — An employer isn’t required to pay for an employee’s leave for a jury duty summons.

However, they are not allowed to penalize or otherwise punish the employee for that time off.

Lastly, suppose the employee works in a company with 5 or fewer full-time employees. In that case, the court will postpone their jury duty service if another employee in the same company is already serving jury duty.

✅ REQUIRED LEAVE

Voting time leave — An employer is required to give employees paid leave for voting, but employees must request it before election day.

All employees should get 3 consecutive hours to vote between the opening and closing hours of the polls.

Voting paid leave can be flexibly used. For example, if the polls close at 7 p.m. and the employee works until 5 p.m., the employer can offer them 1 hour of paid leave so that they can get off work at 4 p.m.

❌ NON-REQUIRED LEAVE

Vacation leave — In Arizona, state law states that employers aren’t obligated to provide paid vacation leave.

Should an employer choose to offer such benefits as a part of a collective bargaining agreement, they should be in line with the company’s established policies. Furthermore, here are a few other considerations:

  • Employers can introduce a policy that denies payment for vacation leave when an employee leaves the company or is terminated,
  • Employers can introduce a policy that disqualifies employees from using paid leave if they fail to comply with specific company requirements (giving a 2-week notice, for example),
  • Employers providing paid vacation leave are also allowed to include a policy stating that employees need to spend their paid leave days by a set date (to prevent greater accrual), and
  • Unless the company has a policy specifying payouts of vacation leave upon termination, employers aren’t legally obligated to provide them.
❌ NON-REQUIRED LEAVE

Bereavement leave — An employee takes bereavement leave due to a death in the family or a close relative.

Arizona has no bereavement leave laws, but employers may decide to provide such a benefit. 

If they do, the conditions must comply with the existing company policy. In general, common practices regarding bereavement leave include offering up to 5 days for the death of an immediate family member and 1-2 days for the death of a close friend.

✅ REQUIRED LEAVE

Domestic violence or sexual assault leave — An employer with 50 or more employees is obligated to provide unpaid leave to employees who are victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking. The leave is required in cases where:

  1. The employee needs to be present at criminal proceedings (sentencing, probation, initial court appearances, etc), and
  2. The employee wants to obtain an order of protection against harassment.

The state of Arizona, however, doesn’t provide paid or unpaid leave for victimized employees to recover from physical or mental injuries, only for legal proceedings.

✅ REQUIRED LEAVE

Family and medical leave — Under the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA), eligible employees can take unpaid leave for family and medical reasons. 

Employees can take 12 weeks of leave in a 12-month period for:

  • Taking care of a newborn child (maternity and paternity leave),
  • Taking care of an adopted child,
  • Taking care of a spouse, child, or parent with a severe health condition,
  • Treating a severe health condition that makes the employee unable to perform their job, and
  • Any valid reason due to their spouse, son, daughter, or parent being on active military duty.

Moreover, employees can take up to 26 weeks of leave to take care of an active service member with a severe injury or illness.

✅ REQUIRED LEAVE

Organ and bone donation leave — For state employees, employers must provide 5 days of paid leave for bone marrow donation, with verified documentation that the employee is a donor.

For organ donations, employers must provide 30 days of paid leave, with verified documentation that the employee is a donor.

✅ REQUIRED LEAVE

Military leave — According to Arizona’s military leave law, an employer is required to approve military leave both in the public and private sector, for members of the National Guard and Military Reserve Components.

Like all other states in the US, Arizona acknowledges the federal Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA), which requires employers to allow employees to return to their jobs after military service without loss of vacation days, seniority, or potential promotions.

Arizona child labor laws

Unlike some states in the US, Arizona no longer requires special forms for the employment of youths under 18 or a written parental agreement. However, the employer must ask for proof of the person’s age (any legal document).

When it comes to the employment of minors in Arizona, the rules are as follows:

With these being the general guidelines, let’s look at specific limitations surrounding youth employment.

Prohibited employment for children under 16 and 17 

Any person 16 and 17 shouldn’t work in, around, or in connection with:

Prohibited employment for children 14 and 15 years of age

Any person aged 14 and 15 shouldn’t work in, around, or in connection with:

🎓 Youth Labor Document

Arizona child labor law exemptions

Child labor laws allow for exemptions in very specific cases:

🎓 Arizona State Legislature Website

Arizona hiring laws

When it comes to the hiring process, the Arizona Civil Rights Act prohibits discrimination based on race, gender, disability, and so on during the hiring process. Other regulations for the hiring process include:

Remember that in cases where Arizona state law and federal law overlap, the employer should comply with the law that benefits the employee more.

Arizona termination laws

Arizona is a state following the “employment-at-will” doctrine. This means that employees can be terminated for any reason at any moment.

The only caveat is that the termination can’t be considered legal if it’s due to discrimination or retaliation against an employee.

Arizona workplace discrimination laws

Arizona follows strict regulations prohibiting discrimination and wrongful employment termination on multiple grounds.

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission prohibits discrimination based on:

Giving bonuses, merits, or deducting wages based on these criteria is also punishable by law.

Arizona miscellaneous laws

In this final section, we’ll go through some of the additional labor laws that are of public interest, such as:

Arizona right-to-work laws

Arizona is a right-to-work state, which means that an employer can’t fire an employee who refuses to join a labor union.

Likewise, an employer can’t use a union membership as leverage for accepting or refusing a job applicant.

Lastly, right-to-work protects employees from being fired if they wish to resign from a union.

Whistleblower protection laws

Arizona Whistleblower Law differentiates between whistleblowers in the public and the private sector. For the public sector, an employer isn’t allowed to fire, threaten, or discriminate against an employee if they report:

In the private sector, an employee is protected by the state only when reporting violations of the Arizona statute or the Arizona Constitution.

Background check laws

Arizona is among 35 US states that follow the Ban the Box legislation. Under this law, an employer can’t ask about or investigate an applicant’s criminal history before offering the job.

According to Arizona background check laws, only felony convictions from the last 7 years and misdemeanor convictions from the previous 5 years can have their application rejected by the employer. Any older felony or sentence can’t be counted while considering an application.

Ban the Box is mandatory only for the public sector, and private businesses have no set guidelines. The easiest route to perform any sort of background check is through the central repository of the Arizona Department of Public Safety

However, only statute-authorized businesses can use this service to request criminal history information. This leaves most employers with basic tools, such as online searches, public court records, former employers, etc.

Employee monitoring law

Arizona is a one-party consent state, which means that to record a conversation (digitally or through a phone), you need the consent of at least one person in the group you wish to record.

Video recording, such as CCTV, doesn’t require consent from the employees. However, the cameras should only be in public locations and not in those that employees use for privacy reasons, such as:

Additionally, employers need to formulate a video surveillance policy that they will present to their employees beforehand.

Drug and alcohol testing laws

Arizona gives employers full freedom to conduct drug and alcohol testing at their discretion, as long as they have a policy detailing who can be tested, when, and why. 

More importantly, all employees must be informed of the policy and any subsequent changes. A few notable conditions include:

COBRA laws

Arizona follows the Federal Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA) but also has its own regulation called the “mini-COBRA.”

Since COBRA applies only to companies with 20 or more employees, small businesses still need their own regulation.

For this purpose, Arizona’s mini-COBRA law provides this aid to employees working in businesses with fewer than 20 employees.

Through mini-COBRA, former employees can continue to use health insurance through their former employer for 18 months after termination and an additional 11 months in case of a disability.

Expense reimbursement laws

Reimbursement for travel expenses in Arizona applies only to public employees and officers, public institution employees, board members, or any other state agency.

The law covers travel reimbursement by air, motor vehicles, or railroads, meals, and lodging expenses, as long as the claims are submitted via appropriate forms.

Arizona record-keeping laws

As for record-keeping, Arizona law requires employers to keep certain records for up to 4 years, including:

These rules apply to all employers in Arizona, whether or not they have to pay the unemployment tax.

Frequently asked questions about labor laws in Arizona

To ensure this guide is as comprehensive as possible, we’ve added an FAQ section where we’ll answer the most common questions about labor laws in Arizona.

What are the labor laws in Arizona?

Arizona uses both federal and state laws to regulate employment. Here are some of the most influential employment and labor laws in Arizona:

Is it legal to work 8 hours without a break in Arizona?

Yes, it’s legal. No federal or state laws require employers to provide breaks to employees. However, if employers give employees short breaks of up to 20 minutes, they are considered compensable.

What is the 23-1501 law in Arizona?

A.R.S. 23-1501, also known as the Arizona Employment Protection Act (AEPA), protects employees from wrongful termination. Employers are held liable for wrongful termination under AEPA if one of the following happens:

Employees should use all administrative procedures before filing a complaint under this law.

Is there pay transparency in Arizona?

No, there is no Arizona pay transparency law that requires employers to reveal payment information.

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scheduling feature in Clockify

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Conclusion/Disclaimer

We hope this Arizona labor law guide has been helpful. Once again, we remind you to pay attention to the links we have provided, as most of them will lead you to the official websites and other relevant information.

Please note the article was written in Q2 2025, so any changes in the rule of law that happen later than that may not be included in this Arizona labor law guide.

We strongly advise you to consult with the appropriate institutions or certified representatives before acting on any legal matters.

Clockify is not responsible for any losses or risks incurred should this guide be used without further guidance from legal or tax advisors.