Arkansas Labor Laws Guide

Arkansas wage laws

This is a brief overview of laws referring to the minimum wage, tipped minimum wage, and subminimum wage in Arkansas.

Minimum wage in Arkansas

The current minimum wage in Arkansas is $11.00 per hour. This rule applies to employers with 4 or more employees.

Employers with fewer than 4 employees must pay their workers at a rate not lower than the federal minimum wage, currently $7.25 per hour.

Non-standard deductions that would bring the employee below minimum wage are not allowed. These deductions include:

• Spoilage or breakage,
• Fines or penalties for lateness, and
• Quitting without notice, etc.

Nonetheless, some deductions to the minimum wage can still be made. These deductions are based on:

• Court orders,
• Wage assignments to a third party, and
• Board, lodging, apparel, or similar expenses.

Other than deductions, there are specific cases where the minimum wage can be lower. In Arkansas, these cases include workers who are paid a tipped minimum wage and those where student rates apply.

Tipped minimum wage in Arkansas

For employees working in establishments that include tipping, tipped minimum wage is $2.63 per hour.

In this case, employees must earn at least the state minimum wage (tips and a tipped minimum wage combined).

If not — the employers need to cover the difference.

This means that it’s the employer's responsibility to keep accurate track of the tips employees receive.

Subminimum wage in Arkansas (student rates)

Full-time students enrolled in an accredited educational institution in Arkansas are to be paid at least 85% of the minimum wage, which amounts to $9.35 per hour.

Additionally, these students can’t work more than 20 hours per week while school is in session, and more than 40 hours on weeks when school isn’t in session.

As for student-learners and apprentices, the same sub-minimum wage requirement applies.

However, the employer must acquire valid certification from the US Department of Labor, affirming their status as accredited to hire students.

Arkansas payment laws

Arkansas employers are required to pay most of their hourly employees on a regular payday and with regular frequency — at least semi-monthly.

This means that employers have to pay their employees 2 times per month, usually on the 1st and 15th of each month.

Arkansas overtime laws

In accordance with the Fair Labor Standards Act, non-exempt employees in Arkansas are entitled to an overtime pay of 1.5 times their regular rate of pay.

In most cases, employers must pay overtime rates for any additional hours worked beyond 40 in a workweek.

🎓 Track Arkansas overtime with Clockify

Overtime exemptions in Arkansas

When it comes to overtime regulations in Arkansans, it’s important to note that certain occupations are considered exempt from overtime rules.

Here is a list of some occupations that are exempt from overtime and minimum wage rules:

• Bona fide executive employees,
• Administrative employees,
• Professional employees,
• Outside salespersons, 
• Students performing school, university, or college services,
• Employees working in the range production of livestock,
• Individuals working for religious and nonprofit organizations,
• Independent contractors,
• Employees working in domestic services (e.g. babysitters),
• Individuals who deliver newspapers,
• Agricultural workers, and
• Individuals employed by the US government.

These categories of employees aren’t strictly entitled to federally prescribed overtime rates, and they have to negotiate these rates with their employers.

The federal law also announced a final rule on overtime exemptions for executive, administrative, and professional employees paid on a salary basis.

Under this rule, the above-mentioned categories of employees are considered exempt from overtime and minimum wage provisions if they earn at least $884 per week.

This threshold is set to increase to $1,128 per week on January 1, 2025, and is later set to increase every 3 years due to inflation rates.

The federal law also exempts highly compensated employees who earn at least $132,964 per year ($151,164 yearly from January 1, 2025).

Overtime exemptions don't apply to the following categories:

• Blue-collar workers, all manual laborers performing repetitive duties, and
• Firefighters, police officers, paramedics, and other first responders.

These employees are always entitled to the overtime rates established by the FLSA, regardless of their earnings.

🎓 How to calculate work hours: A step-by-step guide to calculating payroll and hours worked

Arkansas break laws

The State of Arkansas doesn't require employers to provide meal breaks or rest breaks other than to minors under 16 working in entertainment.

However, if the employer decides to provide break periods, the following rules apply:

• The employer is required to pay for all short breaks under 20 minutes, and
• The employer isn’t required to pay for meal breaks lasting longer than 20 minutes if the employee is relieved of all their responsibilities during the break.

Special rules apply when it comes to lactation breaks.

Arkansas breastfeeding laws

Nursing employees in Arkansas are guaranteed lactation breaks.

Therefore, employers must provide employees with a reasonable break and an appropriate place to express milk.

Under the federal PUMP Act, the room used for pumping milk must meet the following conditions:

• It must be shielded from view,
• It must be free from intrusion, and
• It can’t be used as a bathroom.

Nursing employees are guaranteed lactation breaks for up to 1 year after the birth of a child.

Arkansas child labor laws

Under Arkansas child labor laws, the minimum age requirement for child labor is 14 years of age. Moreover, there are certain limitations regarding occupations and work hours.

Let’s take a deeper look at some of these regulations.

Note: As of August 1st, 2023, child worker permits in Arkansas are no longer mandatory.

Work hour limitations for minors under 16 years of age

Arkansas child labor laws state that the following rules apply to minors under the age of 16:

• They can work a maximum of 6 days per week,
• They can work a maximum of 48 hours per week,
• They can’t work more than 8 hours a day, and
• Their permitted working hours are from 6 a.m. until 7 p.m. on school days, and extended until 9 p.m. on nights not followed by school days.

Work hour limitations for minors 16 years of age

Arkansas child labor laws state that the following rules apply to minors who are 16 years old:

• They can work a maximum of 6 days per week, 
• They can work a maximum of 54 hours per week,
• They can’t work more than 10 hours a day, and
• Their permitted working hours are from 6 a.m. until 11 p.m. on school days, and extended until 12 p.m. on nights not followed by school days.

Prohibited occupations for minors in Arkansas

Certain occupations can be dangerous for minors and are therefore prohibited for minors to preserve their health and well-being.

Some of these occupations include the following:

• Operating heavy machinery,
• Working in any establishment that serves alcohol,
• Operating or servicing motor vehicles,
• Construction work,
• Logging and sawmilling, 
• Mining, and
• Handling explosives.

🎓 Full list of Arkansas prohibited occupations regarding child labor

Arkansas hiring laws

Abiding by the Arkansas Civil Rights Act, Arkansas employee rights make it illegal for employers to discriminate against employees based on their:

• Race,
• Religion,
• Gender,
• National origin, or
• Disability.

All of these hiring laws apply to employers with 9 or more employees.

In addition, several other pieces of legislation protect employees from various kinds of discrimination. These laws include:

• Age Discrimination Act of 1975, 
• Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973,
• Title VIII of the Civil Rights Act of 1968 (Fair Housing Act), and
• Section 109 of Title I of the Housing and Community Development Act 1974.

When it comes to pre-employment inquiries (interviews), employers can’t ask potential employees questions concerning any of the listed characteristics.

Federal laws that apply in the situation of hiring employees do the following:

• They protect the confidentiality of the applicant's medical history,
• They ban the employer from making hiring decisions to discourage union membership, and
• They ban the employer from making decisions based on the applicant's financial history.

Arkansas Right-to-work law

More than half of US states have “right-to-work” laws.

These laws were passed to prevent unions from requiring membership from any employee as a condition of employment.

To protect employees from potential discrimination due to not being part of a union organization, the Arkansas Right to Work Law regulates this area.

Arkansas workplace termination laws

The State of Arkansas utilizes the “at-will-employment” doctrine — meaning that either the employer or employee can terminate the employment relationship at any time.

Reasons for termination also don’t have to be stated by either party.

However, exemptions apply, and they include some of the following cases where the employer can’t lawfully fire someone:

• If the reason is the employee's age, sex, religion, national origin, race, disability, or genetic information,
• If the reason is the employee being pregnant or having an abortion,
• If the employee had a written promise that they would be terminated only for a good reason and were then fired arbitrarily,
• If the reason is the employee refusing to break the law,
• If the employee is absent due to serving on jury duty, and
• If the reason is the employee becoming a whistleblower.

Final paycheck in Arkansas

When it comes to the final paycheck, different rules apply in the following scenarios:

• If the employee quits or resigns due to a labor dispute, their final paycheck must be paid by the next scheduled payday,
• If the employee is fired or laid off — the final paycheck is due by the next scheduled payday, and
• If the employer fails to pay the final paycheck within seven 7 days of the scheduled payday, the employee is entitled to double the amount of their wage.

🎓 FAQ on the official website of the Arkansas Department of Labor

Arkansas occupational safety

The Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA) regulates work safety conditions for most private industries and state programs. All employers covered by this act must provide employees with workplaces free from known, serious hazards.

There are several types of work hazards, recognized and controlled for by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), and include the following:

• Safety hazards — tripping hazards, floor spills, unguarded machinery, confined spaces, etc.,
• Biological hazards — blood, other bodily fluids, mold, viruses, insect bites, animal droppings, etc.,
• Physical hazards — radiation, extremely hot or cold temperature exposure, constant loud noise, long periods of sunlight exposure,
• Ergonomic hazards — frequent lifting, inappropriately adjusted chairs, awkward or repetitive movements, etc.,
• Chemical hazards — cleaning products, paints, acids, vapors and fumes, gasoline, solvents, pesticides, etc., and
• Psychosocial hazards — workload demands, violence, harassment, work intensity or pace, etc.

The OSHA conducts workplace inspections and investigations to make sure these hazards aren’t present in the workplace.

Arkansas leave requirements

Different states have their own regulations around leave requirements for employers. Here's an overview of both the required and non-required types of leaves in Arkansas.

Miscellaneous Arkansas labor laws

Following up is a review of miscellaneous labor laws particular to the State of Arkansas. These include:

• Whistleblower protection laws,
• COBRA laws,
• Drug and alcohol testing laws,
• Background check laws,
• Record keeping laws, and
• Required state and federal employee notices.

Whistleblower protection laws

All states have some form of whistleblower protection laws created to protect employees against retaliation when they report their employer's illegal activity.

In this particular state, the Arkansas Whistleblower protection laws protect private and public employees from retaliation. 

However, they also allow employers the opportunity to correct their conduct violations within a reasonable amount of time.

COBRA laws

A federal law named the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA) allows employees and their families to continue group health benefits once they lose employer-sponsored coverage.

This right applies for a limited period of time and under certain circumstances, such as:

• Voluntary job loss,
• Involuntary job loss,
• Reduction in hours worked,
• Transitioning between jobs,
• Death in the family,
• Divorce, and
• Other major life events.

This is a temporary health coverage extension opportunity, and the employee may be required to pay up to 102% of the planned cost. Also, COBRA laws apply to employers with more than 20 employees.

Similar to the federal COBRA laws, there are also Arkansas mini-COBRA laws, which apply to employers with fewer than 20 employees and give coverage for up to 120 days. 

Drug and alcohol testing laws

In order to keep the working environment safe and drug-free, employers can test employees for alcohol and drug use in specific cases.

Following are the situations where the employer may choose to do so:

• Testing a job applicant for drugs and alcohol during the hiring process,
• When there’s reasonable suspicion leading to drug and alcohol testing,
• If there’s routine fitness-for-duty drug and alcohol testing,
• When the employees are participating in programs assisting with drug or alcohol-related issues, which require follow-up testing for these substances, and
• After the employee had an accident that resulted in injury.

Background check laws

In Arkansas, there are no restrictions placed on private employers concerning the ability to obtain and use arrest records.

Additionally, employers are required to conduct background checks for the following categories of employees:

• Teachers and other staff working on school grounds,
• Professional counselors, psychologists, and social workers,
• Healthcare and personal care providers,
• Childcare facilities staff,
• Auctioneers, and
• Bail bondsmen.

However, when it comes to social media, the employer can’t request that employees add them as social media contacts or request social media log-in information.

🎓 FAQ regarding background checks in Arkansas

Record keeping laws

As far as record keeping goes, employers in Arkansas are required to maintain and keep accurate and truthful records of employee data for 3 years.

This data includes:

• Full name,
• Home address,
• Employee occupation,
• Rate of pay, and
• Amount paid on each payday.

No particular method of record keeping is prescribed, but the data must be:

• Clear and accessible,
• Kept in a safe place, and
• Available for inspection at any time.

Required state and federal employee notices

Arkansas laws require that employers put up state and federal employee notices.

These have to be placed in conspicuous places and easily accessible to all employees.

If not, employers can be required to pay penalties and fines.

The required notices include:

• Your Rights Under the Fair Labor Standards Act notice,
• Notice to Employer and Employee,
• Equal Employment Opportunity is the Law,
• Your Rights under the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993,
• Employee Polygraph Protection Act,
• Notice to Employees, How to Claim Unemployment Insurance,
• Notice to Employer and Employee Act 556 of 1991, entitled the Public Employees’ Chemical Right to Know Act,
• Workers' Compensation Notice and Instructions to Employers and Employees Form P,
• OSHA's Job Safety and Health Protection,
• Your Rights Under the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA),
• Human Trafficking Poster, and
• Hand Washing Poster.

You can find detailed information about which employers are required to put up notices and where to obtain them on the Arkansas Department of Labor & Licencing website.

Frequently asked questions about labor laws in Arkansas

To make this Arkansas labor law guide as comprehensive as possible, we’ve included an FAQ section where we’ll answer some common questions regarding this topic.

How many breaks are there in an 8-hour shift according to law in Arkansas?

There are no breaks required by law in Arkansas. However, if employers give employees breaks, they must comply with them.

Do you have to give two weeks' notice in Arkansas?

Unless stated in the employment contract, neither employees nor employers must give a 2-week notice for termination. 

Is it illegal to work off the clock in Arkansas?

Yes, it is. Working off the clock directly violates the FLSA and is considered illegal. Employers must compensate employees for working in addition to their regular work hours.

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Conclusion/Disclaimer

We hope this Arkansas labor laws guide has been helpful. We advise you to make sure you've paid attention to the links we've provided, as most of them will lead you to the official websites and other relevant information.

Please note that this guide was written in Q1 2022, so any changes in the labor laws that were included later than that may not be included in this Arkansas labor laws guide.

We strongly advise you to consult with the appropriate institutions and/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.