Alabama Labor Laws

The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) provides a basic framework for time management in the US, setting standards for hourly wage rates, overtime pay, and employee record-keeping. The Act ensures fair labor practices across various employment sectors, including non-profit, public, and private organizations.

Alabama does not have its own wage and employment regulations; these laws adhere closely to the standards set by the FSLA. Minimum wage, overtime, and break regulations in Alabama are as follows:

Violation of time management laws can lead to legal ramifications, including fines, back pay, and damages. If an employee believes their employer has violated their rights, they can file a complaint with the Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division for investigation and legal action.

Alabama labor laws provide an equal hiring opportunity to all job applicants. Employers can not discriminate against or harass job applicants based on:

Employees in Alabama aged 40 and above are protected against workplace harassment and discrimination under the federal Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA). State law also allows a job applicant’s criminal records to be expunged (i.e. removed) under particular conditions. Veterans may be voluntarily given preference in the employment process.   

Since Alabama is a right-to-work state, working employees can join labor unions at their own discretion. Union memberships, affiliations, or payments can not be imposed as a condition of employment. 

Employment in the state is generally bound by the at-will employment policy, meaning either employers or employees can choose to terminate an employment contract at any time and for any reason. However, employees can not be terminated for discriminatory reasons, whistleblowing, or retaliation.  

Alabama does not have any specific laws for payment of final wages after the termination of an employee. Here, federal law prevails, which does not require employers to give final paychecks immediately.

However, this rule does not apply to sales representatives in Alabama. Employers are required to pay out any commissions to a sales representative within 30 days of termination, resignation, or expiration of a contract. Other concerns, such as unused paid leave or other benefits, are subject to agreement between the employer and employee. 

Some other key legislations in Alabama include: 

• Employee Health Insurance Laws: The Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA) protects full-time employees who have voluntarily or involuntarily lost their jobs, changed employment, or experienced death, divorce, or other life events. Employees qualifying for COBRA can continue to receive their group health insurance coverage for an additional 18 to 36 months after termination due to a qualifying life event. The Act only applies to businesses with 20 or more employees.
• Workplace Safety Regulations: The federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration Act (OSHA) provides laws to protect employees from workplace hazards in Alabama. Employers in Alabama are mandated to provide a safe working environment without dangers that can cause serious injuries or death to employees. The Secretary of Labor can conduct inspections during regular business hours and assess workplace safety conditions to enforce these regulations. 
• Whistleblower Protection Laws: Public employees in Alabama, who report workplace or ethical violations of the law in good faith to relevant state and federal authorities, are protected by state law from employer retaliation. Employees can not be fired, discriminated against, or harassed  by employers for whistleblowing. Any employer who fails to comply with this law can be subject to civil action in Alabama. However, employees are only allowed to file true complaints. Any employee found guilty of wrongfully reporting their employer can face civil penalties. 
• Employee Recordkeeping Laws: Following the FLSA, employers are required to keep accurate records with work hour and wage information for all non-exempt employees working in their establishment. Payroll and collective bargaining records must be preserved for a minimum of three years whereas data necessary for wage calculations, including employee timesheets, schedules, and wage rate tables, must be maintained for at least 2 years. All records should be readily available for inspection by a state representative. 

Payment laws in Alabama regulate standards for minimum wage, exceptions to minimum wage, and payment schedules.

A minimum wage is the lowest pay employers can legally pay employees for labor performed in a specific period.

Alabama does not have its own laws regarding minimum wage. Employees covered under the FLSA must be paid a minimum wage of $7.25 per hour. 

The FLSA defines a tipped employee as “any employee who regularly receives over $30 per month in tips.” Tipped employees in Alabama are entitled to a minimum cash wage of $2.13 per hour, with a tip credit of $5.12. 

However, a tipped employee’s hourly earnings i.e. their cash wage and tips, must equal $7.25 per hour.  If not, the employer is mandated to cover the difference.

Employers in Alabama can pay subminimum wages to the following employees:

• Student learners
• Full-time students working in retail and agriculture
• Physically or mentally disabled workers
• Employed aged under 20 for the first 90 days of employment
• Executive, administrative, and professional employees
• Computer-related workers
• Employees in certain seasonal and recreational establishments
• Farmworkers
• Babysitters and elderly-care workers

State employees are paid semi-monthly in Alabama, with a total of 24 payments annually. Paydays are scheduled on the 1st and 16th of each month. If a payday falls on a weekend, it is automatically scheduled for the next immediate workday.

Apart from these requirements, Alabama has no specific regulations for paydays.

The FLSA dictates overtime provisions in Alabama. Employees who work more than 40 hours in a standard workweek (i.e. 7 consecutive 24-hour periods) are entitled to receive additional pay calculated at 1.5 times their regular hourly wage for all hours worked as overtime. 

There is no limit to the number of hours an employee can work as overtime. Employers are also not obliged to provide overtime compensation for work done during weekends, holidays, or designated days off unless an employee works overtime on these days. 

Learn more about your overtime rights in Alabama.

Effective July 1st, 2024, employees earning at least $844 weekly (or $43,888 annually) are classified as exempt and are not entitled to receive overtime pay. Exempt employees include:

• Highly compensated employees earning over  $132,964 per year
• Executive, administrative, learned, and professional workers receiving at least $844 weekly
• Salaried computer employees with a weekly pay of $844 or more
• Outside sales employees
  
• Farmworkers
• Employees of railroads and air carriers
• Domestic help living in their employer’s residence
• Employees in motion picture theatres

“Blue-collar” workers, including first responders such as police officers, firefighters, paramedics, rescue workers, and similar community workers, are protected by the provisions of the FLSA and must be compensated for hours worked beyond 40 in a workweek. 

There are no specific laws mandating break and meal periods in Alabama. Lunch or coffee breaks are not required under the FLSA either. However, rest breaks, lasting 5 to 20 minutes, can be provided at the discretion of the employer. 

These breaks must be compensated and included in work-hour calculations for overtime. Employers may also provide unpaid meal breaks, lasting for at least 30 minutes. 

However, the FLSA requires that minors, aged 14 or 15, be provided a documented 30-minute meal or rest period for every 5 hours of consecutive work.  

Employees covered under the PUMP Act must be provided breaks for expressing milk at the workplace. Employers should arrange a private space (other than a bathroom) that is free from intrusion for this purpose.

The lengths and frequencies of the breaks are not outlined in the Act. Employers are required to accommodate the needs of nursing mothers by allowing reasonable break durations at any time of the day.  

The following leave benefits are provided to employees under state law: 

• Sick or Family Leave: Employees in Alabama accrue four hours and 20 minutes of sick leave for every semi-monthly work period. Furthermore, the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) provides eligible employees with up to 12 work weeks of unpaid absence for birth, serious illness, and care of a family member. However, to be eligible, employees must have worked at least 12 months and 1,250 consecutive hours of work for an employer with more than 50 employees in a 75-mile radius.
• Voting Leave: All employers in the state are mandated to provide registered employees with up to one hour of unpaid leave to cast their votes. However, if polls open two hours before an employee’s shift begins or one hour after their shift ends, the employer may opt to not provide voting leave.
• Jury Leave: Full-time employees must receive paid leave if they are summoned for jury duty. Upon receiving a jury summon, the employee must promptly present it to their employer as evidence. Employers can not require employees to utilize annual, vacation, or sick leave for their absence or terminate employees in retaliation. If an employee is discharged for attending jury duty, they are entitled to recover damages.
• Victim of Crime Leave: Employees in Alabama can take leave to testify in court as a victim or witness of a crime without the risk of losing employment. 
• Emergency Leave for Volunteers: Workers who are certified volunteers for the American Red Cross can take 15 days of paid leave in a 12-month period for participation in disaster relief services. Emergency leave can not be deducted from an employee’s vacation or sick leave, and must not affect their job position, benefits, or pay in their organization. 
• Military Leave: Alabama grants 168 hours of paid leave per calendar year to employees for military service. These absences can not be deducted from the employee’s sick or vacation leave. Employers are also not allowed to reduce an employee’s job benefits, performance ratings, or position due to an employee’s absence while serving in the military. 

Here is a table of official US holidays observed in Alabama:

Working hours for minors in Alabama differ based on school hours and age groups. 

When School is in Session:

• Minors aged 14 to 15: Can not work before 7 a.m. and 7 p.m. any day. They can not work during school hours i.e. 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Work hours can not exceed 3 on a school day and 8 on a non-school day. Total work hours may not exceed 18, with the child only working 6 days in a work week.  
• Minors aged 16 to 18: Can not work between 10 p.m. and 5 a.m. on a night before a school day. 

During Summer Break:

• Minors aged 14 to 15:  Can not work before 7 a.m. or after 9 p.m. on any day of the week. Total work hours can not exceed 8 in a day and 40 in a week, with no more than 6 days in a workweek.

Minors under 18 in Alabama can not be employed in the following occupations:

•  Firefighting
• Railroad work, tunneling, or excavation work deeper than four feet
• Roofing, scaffolding, or sandblasting
• Work that includes handling toxic dyes, gases, acids, pesticides or radioactive materials
• Slaughtering, butchering, or meat-related work
• Wrecking, demolition, shipbreaking, or any work related to mines, coal production, or quarries

Minors under the age of 16 can not be employed in connection with any of the following:

• Operating wood polishing, commercial laundry, grinding, or mixing machinery
• Occupations with injurious amounts of dust
• Tobacco manufacturing and packaging
• Soldering, brazing, heat treating, or welding jobs
• Manufacturing and packing of paints, colors, white and red lead 

For detailed information on occupations prohibited for minors in the state, follow Alabama’s official guide to Child Labor Laws.