What Are Your State's Pay Day Frequency Requirements?

Almost every state - except Alabama, Florida, and South Carolina - has some law that informs employees the minimum frequency for paying their employees. Some states have very specific laws when it comes to pay frequency. Here are some examples from the United States Department of Labor.

Illinois, Nevada, New Mexico and Virginia. Monthly payday requirements for Executive, Administrative, and Professional personnel.

Arizona. Two pay days or more in a month, not more than 16 days apart.

Connecticut. Up to monthly intervals permitted if approved by labor commissioner.

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 pay day requirement. Pay day requirement applies only to private sector employment.

Iowa. Any predictable and reliable pay schedule is permitted as long as employees get paid at least monthly and no later than 12 days (excluding Sundays and legal holidays) from the end of the period when the wages were earned. This can be waived by written agreement; employees on commission have different requirements.

Louisiana. Applicable to entities employing 10 or more employees that are engaged in manufacturing, mining, or boring for oil, and to every public service corporation. Payment is required no less than twice during each calendar month.

Maine. Payment due at regular intervals not to exceed 16 days.

California and Michigan. Frequency of pay day depends on the occupation.

Minnesota. Under Minnesota statute, employers are required to pay their employees for all wages due at least once every 31 days. Employees engaged in transitory employment must be paid at intervals of not more than 15 days. Employees of 'public service corporations doing business within this state' are required to be paid at least semi-monthly the wages earned by them to within 15 days of the date of such payment, unless prevented by inevitable casualty.

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.

Montana. If there is not an established time period or time when wages are due and payable, the pay period is presumed to be semimonthly in length.

Nebraska. Pay day designated by employer.

New York. Weekly pay day for manual workers. Semi-monthly payday upon approval for manual workers and for clerical and other workers.

North Carolina. None specified, pay periods may be daily, weekly, bi-weekly, semi-monthly or monthly.

Rhode Island. Childcare providers shall have the option to be paid every two weeks.

Effective January 1, 2014, employers that meet certain requirements outlined in Rhode Island General Law Section 28-14-2.2 may petition the Rhode Island Department of Labor and Training for permission to pay employees less frequently than weekly, but must pay wages at least twice a month.

Texas. Monthly pay day for employees exempt from overtime provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act.

Utah. Employees on a yearly salary can be paid on a monthly basis.

Vermont. Employers may implement bi-weekly and semi-monthly payday with written notice.

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.

New Jersey. Employer may pay bona fide executive, supervisory, and other special classifications of employees once per month.