Minnesota Labor Laws

In the US, the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) manages employees’ time in the workplace, safeguards their rights, and guarantees fair pay for their efforts. This Act serves as a directive for employers, keeping them in check and minimizing any forms of abuse or exploitation.

Generally, time management and labor laws in Minnesota are governed by both federal and state regulations. Where both laws conflict, the policy with stricter protections applies.

Minnesota offers increased minimum wage and break provisions to workers employed in the state, which are briefly discussed as follows: 

Employers who contravene state or federal time management laws can face severe legal ramifications, including fines, back pay, and damages. If workers feel their employer has violated their rights, they can file a complaint with the Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry for investigation and legal action.

During the hiring process, the Minnesota Human Rights Act prohibits any employment practices that discriminate against individuals based on their:

Working employees in Minnesota must be compensated for all hours worked including waiting time, training time, and rest periods lasting less than 20 minutes.

Employers in Minnesota are prohibited from paying varying wages to working employees only due to their gender. Employment-at-will is also practiced in Minnesota, allowing for termination of employment for any lawful reason. However, employers cannot discharge an employee due to discrimination or retaliation due to whistleblowing.  

After termination of employment, an employee is entitled to receive their final wages within 24 hours. On the contrary, employees who willingly quit their jobs must receive their final pay by their next regularly scheduled payday. Note that if an employee’s payday falls within five days from their last day at work, the employer can take an additional 20 days for final wage payment. 

 Some important regulations that may affect employment relations in Minnesota include:

• Health Insurance Continuation Laws: Employees can continue receiving group health insurance after a qualifying life event for themselves and their dependents for 18 to 36 months with the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA). Qualifying reasons for COBRA eligibility include turning 26 and losing parental coverage, divorce, the death of a covered family member, or changes in employment status for yourself, a parent, or a spouse.
• Workplace Safety Laws: Minnesota’s Occupational Health and Safety Program (MNOSHA) has developed workplace safety standards in line with the federal OSHA. Under the program, employees in Minnesota can register complaints related to workplace hazards with anonymity. Furthermore, Minnesota OSHA requires employers to provide hazard communication training and paid protection equipment to employees. It also enforces strict standards for lockout devices, exposure limits, and powered industrial trucks.
• Recordkeeping Laws: Employers in Minnesota must maintain certain employment records for at least three years. These records include the employee’s name, address, occupation, pay rate, hours worked, earnings statements, and meal credits (if applicable). Documents for proof of age must be retained if minors are employed in an establishment. All records must be kept in an easily accessible location, given that the Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry can request inspection at any time. 
• Ban-the-box Laws: In Minnesota, private employers are prohibited from asking about a job applicant’s criminal history during the initial hiring process. Background checks are only allowed if required by state law due to the nature of the job or after a conditional job offer has been made. Employers who fail to comply with this law may face fines.
• Drug and Alcohol Testing Laws: Under the Minnesota Drug and Alcohol Testing in the Workplace Act (DATWA), employers with one or more employees are allowed to test employees for alcohol and drug use.  Drug tests can be carried out under reasonable suspicion, as part of routine physical checks, or randomly (under certain circumstances only). Employers can also test job applicants, provided they have been extended a conditional job offer. All drug tests must follow a written policy and employees must be given prior notice before being tested.

A minimum wage is the lowest remuneration that an employer is obligated by law to pay an employee for work performed within a certain time. This amount may not be further decreased by mutual agreement or collective bargaining. 

Beginning January 1, 2025, Minnesota’s minimum wage has been updated to $11.13 an hour. This rate applies to full-time and part-time employees as well as small and large employers. Employers can pay a reduced minimum wage of $9.08 to workers aged under 20 for the first 90 days of employment. 

The “twin cities” of Minnesota—Minneapolis and St. Paul —have their minimum wage rate, which is slightly higher than the rest of the state. As of January 1, 2025, employers in Minneapolis and St.Paul must pay minimum wage workers at least $15.97 per hour.

A tipped employee is any worker who regularly receives tips from customers or patrons. Minnesota’s wage laws do not specify a specific tip earnings threshold for a worker to qualify as a tipped employee. 

As of January 1, 2025, employers in Minnesota are required to pay tipped workers at least $11.13 per hour. Tip credit is not allowed.

In Minnesota, there are certain exceptions to the minimum wage under state and federal laws including:

• Executive employees, administrative employees, professional employees, and highly compensated employees
• Wreath makers
• Babysitters
• Taxi drivers
• Nonprofit volunteers
• US Department of Transportation employees
• Farmers working for employers with two or fewer employees
• Minors employed in agriculture under specific conditions
• Seasonal camp staff at resident or day camps
• Elected personnel 
• Members of Government boards, commissions, and committees
• Seasonal employees in ski resorts, carnivals, and fairs
• Employees in residential establishments for children
• Religious workers in non-profit organizations
• Public employees in natural resource management jobs

In Minnesota, employers are generally required to pay their employees at least once in a 31-day work period. However, payment frequencies can vary based on the industry and type of work. 

An employee’s paystub must also be issued at the end of each pay period, which should include the employee’s name, hourly wage rate, total number of hours worked, gross pay earned, list of deductions, the employer’s legal name, eave benefits used, and the starting and ending date of the pay period.

According to Minnesota overtime laws, non-exempt employees need to work a minimum of 48 hours during a seven-day workweek to be eligible for overtime pay. Employers must compensate any extra hours beyond 48 at 1.5 times the employee’s regular hourly wage. 

However, employers covered by the FLSA are obligated to pay overtime for any hours worked over 40 hours per week. The types of employees who qualify for this type of overtime vary and may include:

• Employees who produce or handle goods for interstate commerce
• Workers in businesses that earn at least $500,000 in gross annual income
• Employees in hospitals and nursing facilities
• Teachers in public and private schools
• Workers in higher positions in federal and state agencies   

Under the FLSA, any employee earning at least $1,128 per week or ($58,656 annually) is considered exempt from overtime pay i.e. they do not earn overtime wages even if they work for more than 40 hours in a week. Exempt employees generally include personnel employed in executive, administrative and professional roles as well as outside salespeople. 

The following occupations are also considered exempt from overtime pay in Minnesota:

• Highly compensated employees earning over $151,164 annually
• Computer employees earning $27.63 per hour
• Volunteers for nonprofits
• Elected officials or members of government bodies
• Police, firefighters, and related roles
• Taxicab drivers
• Babysitters working alone
• Seasonal camp staff
• Seafarers on exempt vessels
• Agricultural workers meeting specific salary or age conditions
• Minors in municipal recreational programs working less than 20 hours per week
• Religious order members working in nonprofit institutions
• Individuals in executive, administrative, or professional roles
• Seasonal workers at fairs, circuses, or ski facilities
• County employees in residential child supervision roles
• Employees under federal service hour regulations

Learn more in detail about Minnesota Salaried Employees Laws and Minnesota Overtime Laws.

Break laws in Minnesota require employers to allow their workers adequate time for rest. The length of each break is determined by the employer. However, breaks lasting less than 20 minutes are paid if an employee is completely relieved of all duties.

Additionally, employees must be provided restroom breaks after every four hours of work.

For employees working eight hours or more, an unpaid meal break must also be provided. This break must last for a sufficient time for the employee to complete their meal.  

The Minnesota Department of Health requires employers in the state to provide breastfeeding employees reasonably timed paid breaks to express milk for as long as the employee requires after childbirth.

Employers typically work with their employees to determine the duration of these breaks. Additionally, employers must provide a suitable and private space for breastfeeding that is not a bathroom or stall. 

The nursing room should be located near the employee’s workspace and have access to an electric outlet. Failure to comply with these conditions can result in fines determined by a court.  

Existing meal and rest breaks can also be used to express milk. However, these breaks cannot be converted to paid breaks if unpaid.

Employers in Minnesota are required  to provide employees with the following types of leave:

• Sick Leave: Starting January 1, 2024, Minnesota’s Earned Sick and Safe Leave program enables eligible employees to earn one hour of paid leave for every 30 hours worked, up to a maximum of 48 hours per year. To qualify, workers must not be independent contractors and must have worked at least 80 hours for an employer within a year.
• Family and Medical Leave: Federal law permits employees in Minnesota to take up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA). This leave can be used to handle specific family and medical issues, such as caring for a sick family member, treating serious health conditions, or providing care for a family member injured on active duty. 
• Military Leave: Employees who need to care for a family member injured on active duty can receive up to 14 weeks of absence for military caregiver leave in Minnesota. However, additional leave cannot be granted if the family member is injured again while on duty.
• Donation Leave: Companies with 20 or more employees must offer 40 hours of paid bone marrow donation leave in Minnesota. The leave can be extended beyond 40 hours by approval from the employer. Employees wishing to donate can be required to provide medical documentation from a physician indicating their suitability for donation. It’s worth noting that if an employee is found to be unsuitable for donation, their right to take leave will not be taken away.
• School Leave: All employees can take up to 16 hours of unpaid school leave in Minnesota to attend their child’s school conferences or activities. This leave is renewable every year and applies to each child the employee has.
• Jury Duty Leave: In Minnesota, workers can take unpaid jury leave and it is illegal for employers to punish or fire workers who participate in jury duty. Employers must allow employees to miss work without the requirement to work an alternative shift on the day the employee has been summoned for duty. Alternative work schedules can only be requested by the employee.
• Witness Leave: Employees who have been victims of or witnesses to a crime are entitled to take reasonable time off to attend court proceedings, provide testimony, or answer questions from law enforcement officials. Before taking witness leave, workers must provide a 48-hour notice in advance, although exceptions can be made in cases of emergency. Employers are prohibited from taking any punitive action against employees who use this leave, including disciplinary measures, threats, or termination.
• Voting Leave: Voting leave in Minnesota allows eligible employees to paid time off on election day. The duration of the leave is determined by how long it takes for the employee to vote and travel back to work. Employers cannot penalize employees or dock their wages for taking time off to vote.

The following are the official public holidays that will be observed in Minnesota for the year 2025:

Any person under the age of 18 in Minnesota is considered a minor. The minimum age of employment for minors is 14. 

However, minors as young as 11 can be employed for newspaper deliveries, in agriculture, in the entertainment industry, and as youth athletic program referees.

Work Permits for Minors in Minnesota

Minors do not have to secure a work permit before employment in Minnesota. However, an employment certificate is only required by minors aged 14 and 15 who need to work during school hours with the consent of their parent/guardian. This certificate is issued only by the school district superintendent. 

Employers in Minnesota are only required to maintain proof of a minor’s age for payroll records.

State and federal laws outline working hours for minors in Minnesota, which can vary based on the minor’s age. Note that an employer covered by state and federal laws must comply with both.  

The following is a brief overview of regulations employers must adhere to when creating work hour schedules for minors they’ve employed: 

For Minors Aged Under 16

During a school year, employers covered by the FLSA, including businesses with annual revenue exceeding $500,000 annually, cannot have minors work:

• More than three hours daily 
• More than 18 hours weekly
• After 7 p.m.

Except for newspaper deliverers, state law prohibits employers from scheduling minors to work before 7 a.m. and after 9 p.m. Moreover, these minors cannot work for more than eight hours daily and 40 hours weekly, unless they are employed in agriculture. 

For Minors Aged 16 and 17

Under state law, minors from this age group cannot work:

• Before 5 a.m. on school days
• After 11 p.m. on days before school days

These hours can be expanded to 4:30 a.m. and 11:30 p.m. with the consent of a guardian or parent.  

 Under Minnesota child labor laws, certain occupations are prohibited for minors aged under 18, including work in:

Additionally, minors aged under 16 cannot work in: