Skip to content
The Mandate Monitor

What employers in Arkansas must do

Checked November 7, 2026From the agencies that run each program

Short answer

Employers in Arkansas must pay at least $11.00 an hour.

Arkansas has no state paid family and medical leave insurance program.

Running payroll in Arkansas? See the do-it-yourself route and list prices for the 8 payroll systems that say they file payroll taxes.

Arkansas requirements at a glance

RequirementStatusWhat it means for you
Minimum wageIn effect$11.00 an hour

Pay rules Arkansas employers must follow

Paydays
Corporations must pay twice a month (semimonthly). Corporations with $500,000 or more in annual gross income may pay exempt management and executive employees earning over $25,000 a year once a month.
Final paycheck, fired
By the next regular payday. If the pay is not made within 7 days after that payday, the employer owes double the wages due.
Final paycheck, quit
No deadline in state law or agency guidance for employees who quit; the final-pay law covers employees who are discharged.
Meal breaks
No state requirement for adults.
Rest breaks
No state requirement for adults.
Overtime
Time and a half after 40 hours in a workweek. The state law covers employers with 4 or more employees.
New hire reporting
Within 20 days of hire, to the Arkansas Division of Reemployment

From the Arkansas Department of Labor and Licensing and the U.S. Department of Labor’s state tables, checked November 7, 2026.

Upcoming Arkansas deadlines

No dated Arkansas deadlines on file right now. Federal year-end filings still apply.

Deadline calendar for every state · How to hire your first employee · Employer law changes for 2027 · All states

Sources

  1. Arkansas Department of Labor and Licensing
  2. State Payday Requirements (last revised January 1, 2023), U.S. Department of Labor, Wage and Hour Division (read Nov 7, 2026)
  3. Minimum Length of Meal Period Required under State Law for Adult Employees in Private Sector (last revised January 1, 2023), U.S. Department of Labor, Wage and Hour Division (read Nov 7, 2026)
  4. Minimum Paid Rest Period Requirements Under State Law for Adult Employees in Private Sector (last revised January 1, 2023), U.S. Department of Labor, Wage and Hour Division (read Nov 7, 2026)
  5. State Minimum Wage Laws, including premium (overtime) pay after designated hours (updated November 5, 2026), U.S. Department of Labor, Wage and Hour Division (read Nov 7, 2026)
  6. FAQs: final wages, Arkansas Department of Labor and Licensing (read Nov 8, 2026)
  7. Act 853 of 2019 (HB1751), wages of discharged employees, Arkansas General Assembly (read Nov 8, 2026)
  8. Statutes Regulating Wages and Hours in Arkansas (revised October 2008), Arkansas Department of Labor (read Nov 8, 2026)
  9. Last Paycheck, U.S. Department of Labor (read Nov 7, 2026)
  10. Employer Resources: new hire reporting, Arkansas Division of Reemployment (read Nov 7, 2026)