This table summarizes what the Arkansas Department of Labor and Licensing (Division of Labor) publishes for private employers.
EZTime labor rule alerts flag overtime and missed rest periods before payroll.
| Topic | Rule |
|---|---|
| Minimum wage | $11.00 per hour, in effect since January 1, 2021, for employers with 4 or more employees (Division of Labor) |
| Tipped employees | Cash wage of at least $2.63 per hour, with tips making up the rest (11 CAR § 11-705) |
| Overtime | 1.5x the regular rate after 40 hours actually worked in a workweek; no daily overtime |
| Meal and rest breaks | Arkansas is not listed in the U.S. DOL tables of state meal or rest period rules (DOL meal table) |
| Nursing mothers | Reasonable unpaid break time to express milk (Ark. Code § 11-5-116) |
| Paid sick leave | No state paid sick leave rule appears on the Division's labor standards pages |
| Pay frequency | Corporations pay at least semimonthly (Ark. Code § 11-4-401) |
| Final pay | Discharged employees are paid by the next regular payday (Division FAQ) |
| Child labor | Under-16 limits of 8 hours/day, 48 hours/week, 6 days/week; work permits generally no longer required (Child Labor) |
The Arkansas minimum wage is $11.00 per hour. The Division of Labor states that this rate took effect on January 1, 2021, and its minimum wage page does not announce any increase for 2027, so plan on $11.00 for the rest of 2026 and into the new year unless the state publishes a change.
Coverage turns on headcount. The Arkansas Minimum Wage Act applies to employers with 4 or more employees. If you are also covered by the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and have at least four employees, you are covered by both laws and must pay whichever minimum is higher.
Restaurants, bars, salons and other tip-heavy businesses may use a tip credit. Under the Arkansas rule on tipped employees, the cash wage you pay must be at least $2.63 per hour, and the employee's tips must be enough to bring total earnings up to $11.00. If tips fall short in a workweek, you owe the difference. The Division's 2023 employee notice describes the maximum gratuity allowance as $8.37 per hour. Key details from the rule:
Arkansas allows a reduced rate in limited situations. Under 11 CAR § 11-401, learners, student learners and apprentices may be paid not less than 85% of the state minimum wage, but only when the employer holds a current certificate from the U.S. Department of Labor for that purpose.
Arkansas follows a weekly overtime model. In most cases, non-exempt employees earn one and one-half times their regular rate for every hour actually worked beyond 40 in a workweek. There is no daily overtime rule, so a 10-hour shift does not trigger overtime by itself if the week stays at or under 40 hours.
The Division points out a detail that trips up many payroll runs: paid time that is not worked, such as a paid holiday or a sick day, does not count as hours worked for overtime. An employee who works 36 hours and takes 8 hours of paid holiday has 44 paid hours but zero overtime hours. The Division's posted notice also says the state overtime provision does not apply to employers with fewer than 4 employees or to agricultural employees. Some salaried roles may be exempt; the Division refers employers to the federal exemption rules for guidance. For the math, try the overtime calculator or read our FLSA overtime guide.
Arkansas does not appear in the U.S. Department of Labor's tables of state meal period or rest period requirements, which means the state has no general rule forcing private employers to schedule lunch or short breaks for adult workers.
One break rule does apply statewide. Arkansas Code § 11-5-116, summarized on the Division's nursing mothers page, requires employers to provide reasonable unpaid break time each day for an employee who needs to express breast milk. The break should run at the same time as any existing break where possible, and you must make a reasonable effort to provide a private, secure and sanitary space near the work area that is not a toilet stall. An exception applies only where the break would create an undue hardship on operations.
For minors, the state's child labor rules include specific meal period and rest rules for children working in the entertainment industry, such as a meal break before a child has been on site for six hours. Arkansas does not publish a general meal break rule for minors in other jobs.
The Division of Labor's labor standards pages do not describe any Arkansas requirement for private employers to offer paid sick leave or paid vacation. Whether you provide paid time off, how it accrues and whether unused time is paid out at separation is generally a matter of your written policy. In a wage claim over vacation, sick, holiday, bonus or severance pay, the Division asks for a copy of the company policy, so keep it in writing. If you are unsure whether another leave law applies to your business, check with the Arkansas Department of Labor and Licensing. The PTO accrual calculator can help you set up a fair accrual rate.
Arkansas Code § 11-4-401, reprinted in the Division's wage and hour statutes, requires corporations doing business in the state to pay employees at least semimonthly. Corporations with $500,000 or more in annual gross income may pay certain FLSA-exempt management and executive employees earning more than $25,000 a year once a month. The Division's minimum wage rules allow pay by cash, check, direct deposit or a preloaded payroll debit card, and a debit card must allow at least one free withdrawal for each wage deposit.
According to the Division's FAQ, when a company terminates an employee, the employee's wages are due by the next regular payday. If the employer fails to pay within 7 days after that payday, it owes the employee double the wages due. The Division's pages do not set a separate deadline for employees who quit, so the safest practice is to pay departing workers on the next regular payday as well.
If a worker believes wages are unpaid, the Division's Labor Standards Section investigates claims of $2,000 or less. Workers earning more than $50,000 per year are not eligible for that process. Employers can contest a claim at an administrative hearing.
In most cases, a child must be at least 14 to work in Arkansas. The state's Child Labor Rules set the following hour limits:
| Age | Hour limits |
|---|---|
| Under 16 | No more than 6 days a week, 48 hours a week or 8 hours a day; not before 6:00 a.m. or after 7:00 p.m., except until 9:00 p.m. on nights before non-school days |
| Age 16 | No more than 6 days a week, 54 hours a week, 10 consecutive hours a day or 10 hours in a 24-hour period; not before 6:00 a.m. or after 11:00 p.m., with work allowed until midnight before non-school days |
Federal child labor rules can be stricter than state limits, especially for 14- and 15-year-olds during the school year, so covered employers must follow whichever rule protects the minor more. Under Act 195 of 2023, Arkansas no longer requires work permits for minors, except entertainment work permits. Employers must keep records for each employee under 17, including date of birth, pay rate, and daily start and end times, and keep them for three years.
Track daily and weekly hours, pay rates, tips and deductions for every non-exempt employee. For posters, the Division's Required Postings page offers the Notice to Employer and Employee, which covers minimum wage, overtime, child labor and wage collection. The notice states that employers subject to the Minimum Wage Act must post it in a conspicuous place for all employees.
With no state break mandate and overtime tied strictly to hours actually worked, Arkansas payroll comes down to accurate punches. EZTime gives you a GPS mobile time clock with geofencing, NFC tags, a tablet kiosk and biometric clocks, so every punch is tied to the right person and place. Build schedules with shift templates and let staff request swaps, get overtime and break alerts before a shift goes long, and track PTO and sick-leave balances automatically. When the pay period closes, export payroll-ready Excel or PDF reports that work with any payroll software. See the attendance clock and scheduling software, or check pricing: plans start at $2 per employee per month with a 14-day trial.
This guide is general information, not legal advice. Laws change; check the Arkansas Department of Labor and Licensing or an employment attorney. Last reviewed November 2026.
The Arkansas minimum wage is $11.00 per hour, a rate that has applied since January 1, 2021. It covers employers with four or more employees.
Arkansas has no general meal or rest break requirement for adult employees. It does require reasonable unpaid break time for employees who need to express breast milk.
When an employer discharges an employee, all wages are due by the next regular payday. If payment is not made within 7 days of that payday, the employer can owe double the wages due.
No. Overtime is owed at 1.5 times the regular rate for hours actually worked over 40 in a workweek, and paid holidays or sick days do not count toward the 40.
Under Act 195 of 2023, work permits are no longer required for minors, except for entertainment work permits. Hour limits for children under 16 and for 16-year-olds still apply.