State Pay Day Requirements
Almost every state carries a law setting out how often employees must be paid, i.e. once a week, twice a month, etc. Following is a chart identifying pay day requirements for 48 states and the District of Columbia (Alabama and South Carolina state laws do not currently specify pay day requirements).
Note: where a number accompanies an "x" on the chart, scroll down to the bottom of the chart for further explanation of the law in that state.
State | Weekly | Bi-weekly | Semi-monthly | Monthly |
Alabama1 | | | | |
Alaska | | | x | x |
Arizona | | | x3 | |
Arkansas | | | x | |
California | | | x | |
Colorado | | | | x |
Connecticut | x4 | | | |
Delaware | | | | x |
District of Columbia | | | x | |
Florida | | | | x |
Georgia | | | x | |
Hawaii | | | x | x5 |
Idaho | | | | x |
Illinois | | | x | x2 |
Indiana | | x | | |
Iowa | | x6 | | |
Kansas | | | | x |
Kentucky | | | x | |
Louisiana | | x | x7 | |
Maine | | | x8 | |
Maryland | | x | | |
Massachusetts | x | x | | |
Michigan 9 | x | x | | x |
Minnesota | | | | x |
Mississippi | | x10 | x10 | |
Missouri | | | x | |
Montana | | x11 | | |
Nebraska 12 | | | | |
Nevada | | | x | x2 |
New Hampshire | x | | | |
New Jersey | | | x | |
New Mexico | | | x | x2 |
New York | x13 | | x13 | |
North Carolina 14 | | | | |
North Dakota | | | | x |
Ohio | | | x | |
Oklahoma | | | x | |
Oregon | | | | x |
Pennsylvania 12 | | | | |
Rhode Island | x | | | |
South Carolina1 | | | | |
South Dakota | | | | x |
Tennessee | | | x | |
Texas | | | x | x15 |
Utah | | | x16 | |
Vermont | x | x17 | x17 | |
Virginia | | x18 | x18 | x2 |
Washington | | | | x |
West Virginia | | x | | |
Wisconsin | | | | x |
Wyoming | | | x | |
1 Alabama and South Carolina. No regulations or not specified.
2 Illinois, Nevada, New Mexico and Virginia. Monthly payday requirements for Executive, Administrative, and Professional personnel.
3 Arizona. Payday two or more days in a month, not more than 16 days apart.
4 Connecticut. Longer interval (up to monthly) permitted if approved by labor commissioner.
5 Hawaii. Employees may choose to be paid on a monthly basis under special election procedure. Director of labor and industrial relations also may grant exceptions to the general semi-monthly payday requirement. Payday requirement applies only to private sector employment.
6 Iowa. Regular payday no more than 12-days excluding Sundays and holidays after the end of the period in which the wages were earned . Farm labor contractor at least monthly, semi-monthly, or bi-weekly.
7 Louisiana. Applicable to entities engaged in manufacturing, mining, or boring for oil, employing 10 or more employees, and to every public service corporation. Payment is required once every two weeks or twice during each calendar month.
8 Maine. Payment due at regular intervals not to exceed 16 days.
9 Michigan. Frequency of payday depends on the occupation.
10 Mississippi. Applicable to every entity engaged in manufacturing of any kind in the State employing 50 or more employees and employing public labor, and to every public service corporation doing business in the State. Payment is required once every two weeks or twice during each calendar month.
11 Montana. Payday 10 days apart.
12 Nebraska and Pennsylvania. Payday designated by employer.
13 New York. Weekly payday for manual workers. Semi-monthly payday upon approval for manual workers and for clerical and other workers.
14 North Carolina. None specified, pay periods may be daily, weekly, bi-weekly, semi-monthly or monthly.
15 Texas. Monthly payday for employees exempt from overtime provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act.
16 Utah. Payments are to be paid at regular intervals, but in periods no longer than semi-monthly.
17 Vermont. Employers may implement bi-weekly and semi-monthly payday with written notice.
18 Virginia. Employees whose weekly wages total more than 150 percent of the average weekly wage of the Commonwealth may be paid monthly, upon agreement of each affected employee.
Prepared By:
Division of External Affairs
Wage and Hour Division
Employment Standards Administration
U.S. Department of Labor
This document was last revised in November 2003; unless otherwise stated, the information reflects requirements that were in effect, or would take effect, as of January 1, 2004.
Source: U.S. Department of Labor
