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The Mandate Monitor

What employers in Hawaii must do

Checked November 8, 2026From the agencies that run each program

Short answer

Employers in Hawaii must pay at least $16.00 an hour, rising to $18.00 on January 1, 2028.

Hawaii has no state paid family and medical leave insurance program. Hawaii’s Temporary Disability Insurance (TDI) law requires employers to give eligible employees partial wage replacement insurance coverage for injury or sickness that isn’t work-related, including pregnancy, according to the state’s Disability Compensation Division.

Hawaii Retirement Savings Program (HISavers) has been signed into law, but no employer has to register yet.

The next dated change in Hawaii is January 1, 2028: Hawaii minimum wage rises to $18.00.

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Hawaii requirements at a glance

RequirementStatusWhat it means for you
Minimum wageIn effect$16.00 an hour; $18.00 from January 1, 2028
Retirement mandate: Hawaii Retirement Savings Program (HISavers)Signed into lawAny private employer in business in Hawaii with one or more employees, unless it has offered or maintained a 401(a), 401(k), 403(a), 403(b), Simplified Employee Pension (SEP) (408(k)) or SIMPLE individual retirement account (IRA) (408(p)) plan for some or all employees at any time in the preceding two years. Covered employees are Hawaii residents 18 or older whose wages are subject to Hawaii income tax. Government employers are excluded, as are employees covered by the Railway Labor Act or by Taft-Hartley multiemployer pension contributions.

Pay rules Hawaii employers must follow

Paydays
At least twice a month on regular paydays set in advance, within 7 days after the pay period ends.
Final paycheck, fired
At the time of discharge or by the next working day.
Final paycheck, quit
By the next regular payday. If the employee gave at least one pay period’s notice, on the last day.
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. Employees paid a fixed $4,000 or more a month are exempt from the state minimum wage and overtime law, though the federal rules can still apply to them.
New hire reporting
Within 20 days of the first day of work, to the Hawaii Child Support Enforcement Agency
Disability insurance
Hawaii’s Temporary Disability Insurance (TDI) law requires employers to give eligible employees partial wage replacement insurance coverage for injury or sickness that isn’t work-related, including pregnancy, according to the state’s Disability Compensation Division. source

From the Hawaii Department of Labor and Industrial Relations and the U.S. Department of Labor’s state tables, checked November 8, 2026.

Upcoming Hawaii deadlines

  1. · Minimum wage

    Hawaii minimum wage rises to $18.00

    Tipped cash wage: $16.50

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

Sources

  1. Hawaii Department of Labor and Industrial Relations, Wage Standards Division
  2. Hawaii Retirement Savings Board (Department of Labor and Industrial Relations)
  3. About Temporary Disability Insurance (Disability Compensation Division), Hawaii Department of Labor and Industrial Relations (read Nov 8, 2026)
  4. State Payday Requirements (last revised January 1, 2023), U.S. Department of Labor, Wage and Hour Division (read Nov 7, 2026)
  5. 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)
  6. 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)
  7. 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)
  8. Unpaid Wages (Wage Standards Division), Hawaii Department of Labor and Industrial Relations (read Nov 7, 2026)
  9. New Hire Reporting (form FLO100), Hawaii Department of the Attorney General, Child Support Enforcement Agency (read Nov 7, 2026)
  10. Breaks: Meal and Rest, Hawaii Department of Labor and Industrial Relations, Wage Standards Division (read Nov 8, 2026)
  11. Wage and Hour FAQs, Hawaii Department of Labor and Industrial Relations, Wage Standards Division (read Nov 8, 2026)
  12. HRS 387-1, Definitions, Hawaii State Legislature (read Nov 8, 2026)