Compliance Watch:

What are my rights as an hourly employee in Montana?

To learn more about Montana labor laws, you can access our informative guides on understanding the rights of salaried employees in Montana and how to run payroll in Montana.

The term “minimum wage” refers to the least amount of pay an employee can be compensated for each hour worked. While federal wage laws are overseen by the Fair Labor Standards Act, each state possesses the discretion to fix a minimum wage that is higher than the federal baseline. Remarkably, Montana  is one of the states that have established a minimum wage that is higher than the federal requirement.

As of January 1, 2024, Montana’s minimum hourly wage is set at $10.30. Therefore, in alignment with Montana’s minimum wage law, an hourly employee generally earns a minimum of $412 in a regular 40-hour work week.

While some employees are legally entitled to earn the state’s mandated minimum hourly wage, it is worth noting that both federal and state laws have established exceptions for certain types of employees regarding both minimum wage and overtime requirements. These excluded employees involve the following groups:

• Tipped Employees: Employees who receive tips may receive a lower minimum wage than the state’s minimum wage, as long as the tips added with the hourly wage equals to the state’s minimum hourly wage of $10.30
• Full-time students: High school or college students working on a part-time basis may earn a minimum wage of $8.75 per hour, which is 85% of the state’s minimum wage requirement, for up to 20 hours of work in a single week
• Employees below the age of 20 years: Federal law permits employees below the age of 20 to earn a minimum hourly wage of $4.25 within the first 90 days of commencing employment. After 90 days, they must receive the minimum wage fixed by the laws of the state

Other job categories that are excluded from the minimum wage include:

• White-collar employees (i.e. bona fide executives, administrative workers, and professionals)
• Outside salesmen
• Computer professional employees
• Students participating in a distributive education program established under the auspices of an accredited educational agency
• Employees working in a private home with duties that consist of menial chores such as babysitting, lawn mowing, cleaning sidewalks
• Employees working directly for the head of a household to care for the dependent children of the head of household
• Immediate family members of an employer or individuals dependent upon an employer for half or more of their support in the customary sense of being labeled a dependent
• Individuals who are not regular employees of a non-profit organization and volunteer his or her services to the non-profit organization on a fully or partially reimbursed basis
• Individuals who are retired or semi-retired and provide incidental work as a condition of their living on a farm or ranch
• Individuals employed by the United States of America provided the terms of their employment, resident managers working in a lodging establishment or assisted living facility and live in the establishment or facility in which they are employed.
• Direct sellers as defined in 26 U.S.C. 3508
• Individuals placed as participants in public assistance programs authorized by Title 53 into work settings for the purpose of developing employment skills. The placement may be with either a public or private employer. The exclusion does not apply to an employment relationship formed in the work setting outside the scope of the employment skills activities authorized by Title 53
• Individuals serving as a foster parent, are licensed foster care providers, and providing care without wage compensation to no more than six foster children in the provider’s personal residence. The individual may receive compensation for providing room and board, receiving training, respite care, leisure and recreational activities, and providing for other needs and activities that may arise in the provision of in-home foster care
• Employees working in domestic service to provide services of companionship (as defined in 29 CFR 552.6) or respite care for individuals who are unable to care for themselves due to age or infirmity as provided under section 213(a)(15) of the Fair Labor Standards Act (29 U.S.C. 213), when the individual providing the service is employed directly by a family member or an individual who is legal guardian
• Employees of seasonal nonprofit establishments that are organized camps or religious or educational conference centers
• Students enrolled at a postsecondary educational institution who assist with the implementation of student housing programs and receive full or partial remuneration in the form of free or reduced housing in university or campus-owned housing facilities

According to the overtime rules established by Montana’s labor laws, an employee who works beyond 40 hours a week must be compensated at a pay rate of 1.5 times their standard hourly wage. Therefore, Montana’s hourly employees typically earn $15.45 for every hour worked overtime.

While some employees may be eligible to earn overtime compensation according to federal and state laws, it is also worth recognizing that Montana’s statutory laws explicitly exclude the categories of employees listed below from earning the state’s overtime wage:

• Employees subject to the authority of the United States secretary of transportation to establish qualifications and maximum hours of service pursuant to the provisions of 49 U.S.C. 31502
• Employees of an employer subject to 49 U.S.C. 10501 and 49 U.S.C. 60501, the provisions of part I of the Interstate Commerce Act
• Individuals working as outside buyers of poultry, eggs, cream, or milk, in their raw or natural state
• Salespersons, parts persons, or mechanics paid on a commission or contract basis and primarily engaged in selling or servicing automobiles, trucks, mobile homes, recreational vehicles, or farm implements if the salespersons, parts persons, or mechanics work for a nonmanufacturing establishment primarily engaged in the business of selling the vehicles or implements to ultimate purchasers
• Salespersons primarily engaged in selling trailers, boats, or aircraft if the salespersons are employed by a nonmanufacturing establishment primarily engaged in the business of selling trailers, boats, or aircraft to ultimate purchasers
• Salespersons paid on a commission or contract basis who are primarily engaged in selling advertising for a radio or television station employer
• Employees working as drivers or driver’s helpers making local deliveries who are compensated based of trip rates or other delivery payment plan if the commissioner finds that the plan has the general purpose and effect of reducing hours worked by the 
• Employees to or below the maximum workweek applicable to them under 39-3-405
• Employees working in agriculture or in connection with the operation or maintenance of ditches, canals, reservoirs, or waterways that are not owned or operated for profit, that are not operated on a sharecrop basis, and that are used exclusively for supply and storing of water for agricultural purposes
• Employees of an establishment commonly recognized as a country elevator, including an establishment that sells products and services used in the operation of a farm if no more than five employees are employed by the establishment
• Drivers working for an employer that operates taxicabs
• Employees who work with the employees’ spouse by a nonprofit educational institution to serve as the parents of children who are orphans or one of whose natural parents is deceased or who are enrolled in the institution and reside in residential facilities of the institution so long as the children are in residence at the institution and so long as the employee and the employee’s spouse reside in the facilities and receive, without cost, board and lodging from the institution and are together compensated, on a cash basis, at an annual rate of not less than $10,000
• Employees who plant or tend trees; cruise, survey, or fell timber; or transport logs or other forestry products to a mill, processing plant, railroad, or other transportation terminal if the employer in the forestry or lumbering operations does not employ more than eight (8) employees
• Employees of a sheriff’s office who are working under an established work period in lieu of a workweek pursuant to 7-4-2509(1)
• Employees of a municipal or county government who are working under a work period not exceeding 40 hours in a 7-day period established through a collective bargaining agreement when a collective bargaining unit represents the employees or by mutual agreement of the employer and employees when a bargaining unit is not recognized. 
• Employment in excess of 40 hours in a 7-day, 40-hour work period must be compensated at a rate of not less than 1½ times the hourly wage rate for the employees
• Employees of a hospital or other establishment primarily engaged in the care of the sick, disabled, aged, or mentally ill or defective who is working under a work period not exceeding 80 hours in a 14-day period established through either a collective bargaining agreement when a collective bargaining unit represents the employees or by mutual agreement of the employer and employees when a bargaining unit is not recognized
• Employment in excess of 8 hours a day or 80 hours in a 14-day period must be compensated for at a rate of not less than 1½ times the hourly wage rate for the employees
• Firefighters who work under a work period established in a collective bargaining agreement entered into between a public employer and a firefighters’ organization or its exclusive representative
• Officers or other employees of a police department in a city of the first or second class who is working under a work period established by the chief of police under 7-32-4118
• Employees of a department of public safety working under a work period established pursuant to 7-32-115
• Employees of a retail establishment if the regular rate of pay exceeds 1½ times the minimum hourly rate applicable under section 206 of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, 29 U.S.C. 206, and if more than half of the employees’ compensation for a period of not less than 1 month is derived from commissions on goods and services
• Individuals working as guides, cooks, camp tenders, outfitter’s assistants, or livestock handlers by a licensed outfitter as defined in 37-47-101 
• Employer in a second- or third-class city or a town
• Employees of the consolidated legislative branch as provided in 5-2-503
• Employees of the state or its political subdivisions employed, at the employees’ option, on an occasional or sporadic basis in a capacity other than the employees’ regular occupation
• Employees of air carriers subject to the provisions of 45 U.S.C. 181, et seq., whose hours worked in excess of 40 hours in a workweek were not required by the air carriers but were arranged through voluntary agreements among employees to trade scheduled work hours
• Employees working as a radio announcers, news editors, or chief engineers by an 
• Employees working in agriculture by a farmer, notwithstanding other employment of the employee in connection with livestock auction operations in which the farmer is engaged as an adjunct to the raising of livestock, either alone or in conjunction with other farmers, if the employee is:
  • primarily employed during a workweek in agriculture by a farmer; and
  • paid for employment in connection with the livestock auction operations at a wage rate not less than that prescribed by 39-3-404

In the United States, employees are typically provided with time off for personal, medical, or family-related purposes. Some of these types of leave are regulated by either state or federal laws, which require qualifying employees who meet the specific requirements to be given these leaves. In Montana, both state and federal laws provide employees with legal rights to use different leave options. The list below highlights some of the many types of leave that you, as an hourly employee in Montana, have the legitimate right to use.

• Jury Duty leave: Montana employers are prohibited from taking adverse employment actions against employees who respond to a jury summons. Furthermore, employees are not required to be compensated for taking time off to respond to a jury summons.
• Crime Victim leave: Montana’s victims’ rights laws protect crime victim employees from having adverse employment actions taken against them for using their crime victim leave for preparing or taking part in a criminal proceeding.
• Military leave: Under the Montana Military Service Employment Rights Act, employees are safeguarded from discharge or discrimination by their employers based on their membership in or application to join the state militia. The Act also grants employees the right to reinstatement and protection from discrimination when they assert their military service-related rights.
• Family and Medical Leave: The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) is a federal law that provides eligible employees with the legal right to take up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave annually for certain family or serious health-related reasons. To be qualify for this leave, employees must meet the following criteria:
  • They must have been employed by the same employer for a minimum of 12 months before using this leave.
  • They need to have worked for a minimum of 1,250 hours within the 12-month period while employed by the same employer.
  • They must work for an employer with a workforce of at least 50 employees within a 75-mile radius.

As an hourly employee, it is imperative to keep abreast of the employment rights and compensation benefits that you have the right to during the course of your employment. The following list details some of the various employment benefits that are available to you in Montana:

• Minimum wage: Montana’s employees possess the legal right to receive the state’s prevailing minimum pay of $10.30 per hour.
• Overtime: At both federal and state levels, employers are obligated to pay non-exempt employees any hours worked in excess of 40 hours a week at a set pay rate of 150% their regular hourly pay.
• Worker’s compensation insurance: According to Montana’s Workers Compensation Act, employees (hired by employers with a workforce of 3 or more employees) who have sustained job-related injuries or illnesses are eligible to receive several benefits under the Act and must promptly report their injuries in time to prevent a denial of their benefits. Moreover, as of October 1, 2021, employers are required to pay reasonable burial expenses worth up to $10,000 for employees who have died as a result of a work-related injury. 
• Unemployment insurance benefits: Unemployment insurance benefits provide temporary income to individuals who have lost their jobs through no fault of their own. These benefits are designed to partially offset lost wages while the unemployed individual seeks new employment opportunities or awaits rehiring. Montana state law prohibits employers from coercing employees to pay these contributions from their paychecks or from waiving their rights to unemployment benefits.
• Extended health insurance benefits: The Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA) is a federal statute that allows employees to prolong their health insurance benefits following the termination of their employment. Since federal COBRA only applies to employers with 20 or more employees, numerous states have established their own version of the law, often referred to as “mini-COBRAs.” Montana’s mini-COBRA enables employees to maintain their health insurance benefits for a duration of up to one year after the reduction of their work hours. Although, providing such benefits lie at the discretion of employers.

Both federal and state legislatures have implemented a series of laws to safeguard employees from a variety of workplace disparities, covering matters concerning health and safety, discrimination, reporting wrongdoing, and more. The list below outlines several fundamental laws that provide legal protection for your rights and welfare while you are employed.

• Social media protection laws: Under Montana law, employers are prohibited from requesting or requiring a job applicant to do any of the following: disclose their social media account login credentials, grant access to their social media accounts, or reveal personal information from their personal social media profiles while applying for a job.
• Telephone monitoring protection laws: Montana is an  “all parties” consent state, which means that all individuals on a phone call must be aware that their conversation is being recorded or monitored and have given their consent for the call to be monitored or recorded. Therefore, employers can only monitor or record phone calls between their own employees if each employee has been given prior notice that the call will be monitored or recorded. When it comes to phone calls made between employees and outside parties, such calls may only be monitored or recorded if the outside party has given prior consent.
• Child labor protection laws: “Montana’s child labor laws enforce strict regulations on the types of jobs minors can engage in and their allowable working hours during the school year, depending on their age group. Additionally, Montana has amended its child labor laws to exclude individuals aged 16 or 17 from the definition of minors, as long as they are student employees working under the supervision of a qualified and experienced individual.
• Whistleblower protection laws: Montana’s employees are protected from being discharged or discriminated against for doing any one of the following actions: submitting a complaint under the Montana Human Rights Act, partaking in an investigation or proceeding under the Montana Human Rights Act, or reporting a legal or public policy violation, including the Montana Constitution and administrative rules.
• Anti-discrimination Covid-19 vaccination protection laws: Employers in Montana are prohibited from discriminating against a job applicant  based on their vaccination status or whether they have an immunity passport.

Severance pay is a form of monetary compensation that is given by employers to departing employees. Its primary purpose serves to financially assist individuals as they transition between jobs and actively pursue new career opportunities.

While severance pay is a valuable benefit for employees, neither federal nor state laws in Montana mandate its provision to employees. Instead, it is a matter contingent on the mutual agreement between the employer and the employee. Therefore, if an employer chooses to extend severance pay, it must be explicitly defined in the employment contract or a collective bargaining agreement, to which both you and your employer must give consent. Severance pay is typically calculated based on the employee’s tenure with the company where it is common practice for one week’s worth of pay to be given to employees for every year of their service in the state of Montana.