KS · state labor law, 2026
Kansas labor laws: minimum wage, overtime, leave, final pay and breaks
Kansas has its own overtime threshold of 46 hours, yet most Kansans are paid overtime after 40 because federal law covers their jobs.
Kansas and federal rules checked on official sources on · Checked by Radif Partners · How we calculate
- Minimum wage now
- $7.25/h
- statewide
- Next change
- none announced
- checked October 11, 2026
- Tipped cash wage
- $2.13/h
- tips must make up the rest
- Overtime
- 40 h/week
- federal rule; state law 46 h
- Paid sick leave
- no state law
- employer policy
- Paid family leave
- no program
- FMLA is unpaid
Most Kansas workers earn overtime after 40 hours a week, under the federal Fair Labor Standards Act; the state's own 46-hour threshold applies only to jobs the FLSA does not cover. The minimum wage follows the same split. Kansas law sets $7.25 an hour, but only for employers outside the FLSA, and federal law already requires $7.25 everywhere else, so the result is the same: $15,080 for a full-time year in 2026, with no increase announced for 2027. Tipped employees may receive $2.13 in cash if tips fill the gap. Since 2013, cities and counties have been barred from setting a higher wage or requiring paid or unpaid leave, so no Kansas city has a minimum wage or sick leave ordinance. Final wages are due by the next regular payday after you quit or are discharged, and a willful delay can add a penalty of 1 percent a day.
Gross pay for this week in Kansas
$290
Time and a half after 40 hours in a week (federal rule)
| Minimum wage in Kansas now | $7.25 an hour |
| Your rate against it | At or above the minimum |
| Overtime: none this week | $0 |
| Paid sick leave earned in a year | No statewide paid sick leave law |
| Breaks owed in a 8-hour shift | None required for adults |
| Final paycheck if fired | by the next regular payday |
| Unused vacation at the end | Paid out if the employer policy or contract says so |
| Paid family leave | No state program |
40 hours a week at $7.25. State rule applied. Minimum wage, overtime and leave rules have exceptions by employer size and industry. How this is calculated.
Forty hours or forty-six: which number is yours
Kansas is one of the few states whose overtime statute starts later than federal law. K.S.A. 44-1204 requires time and a half only for hours beyond 46 in a workweek. The statute applies solely to employees not covered by the federal overtime rules, and the FLSA reaches most of the workforce: any business with $500,000 or more in annual sales, plus workers at smaller firms whose own work involves interstate commerce. If you are covered by the FLSA, 40 hours is your number, and the stricter rule wins.
The difference is real for the small group left outside. A worker paid $18 an hour for a 48-hour week earns $936 under the federal rule and $882 under the Kansas rule alone, a gap of $54 in a single week. Salaried staff face the federal $684 weekly threshold; Kansas adds none of its own. Overtime rules in other states show how rare a 46-hour line is.
Who the state wage law leaves out
The Kansas Minimum Wage and Maximum Hours Law excludes any employer subject to the FLSA, and it also lists its own exclusions, including agricultural and domestic workers and people aged 18 or younger who work occasionally or part time. For nearly everyone the controlling rate is the federal $7.25. A restaurant can pay a tipped server $2.13 as long as tips bring the hour to $7.25; if they do not, the employer must make up the difference. Not sure which law covers your job? The Wage and Hour Division of the U.S. Department of Labor answers coverage questions for free, and an employment lawyer can look at the facts of a disputed case.
No city can go further
K.S.A. 12-16,130, passed in 2013, stops any city, county or local unit from requiring employers to pay more than the state or federal minimum or to provide leave from work beyond what state or federal law requires. That rules out a local minimum wage or a local sick leave ordinance anywhere in the state. Sick days in Wichita, Topeka or Overland Park therefore depend on the employer's policy, and the federal FMLA remains the main source of job-protected, unpaid leave for eligible workers.
Sick leave you earn in a year
Kansas
No statewide law
| Leave | Employer policy or city ordinance |
| Federal law | No paid sick leave requirement |
The penalty for holding back a final check
Whether an employee quits, resigns or is discharged, earned wages are due no later than the next regular payday. When an employer willfully fails to pay, Kansas law adds a penalty of 1 percent of the unpaid wages for each day after the eighth day, capped at 100 percent of the wages. On $1,500 held back, that is $15 a day, and the cap is reached at $1,500. Whether a delay was willful is decided in a wage claim, not by the worker or the employer alone. Final paycheck rules by state compare the deadlines.
Kansas employment rules at a glance, 2026
Minimum wage schedule
| From | Who it covers | Rate | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| January 1, 2010 | Statewide | $7.25 | K.S.A. 44-1203; the state law applies only to employers and employees not covered by the federal FLSA (which also requires $7.25). |
Workers covered by both laws get the higher rate. The state law excludes, among others, agricultural and domestic workers and persons 18 or younger employed occasionally or part-time (K.S.A. 44-1202). Read the Kansas rule.
Overtime
Time and a half after 40 hours in a week under federal law (the state's own threshold, 46 hours, matters only for jobs the FLSA does not cover). The salary test for exempt employees is the federal $684 a week. Kansas state overtime starts after 46 hours a week and applies only to employees NOT covered by FLSA overtime; FLSA-covered employees get overtime after 40 hours under federal law. source
Sick leave and family leave
Kansas has no statewide paid sick leave law for private employers; leave depends on the employer's policy or a city ordinance. No state paid sick leave law; cities and counties are barred from requiring paid or unpaid leave beyond state or federal law (K.S.A. 12-16,130). source
No state paid family leave insurance: the federal FMLA gives eligible workers up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave.
Final paycheck and unused vacation
Fired or laid off: by the next regular payday. Quitting: by the next regular payday. Vacation: No statute requires payout of accrued vacation; it follows the employer's policy or contract.. source
Meal and rest breaks
No meal break is required for adults by state law. No paid rest break is required for adults. source
Unions and dismissal
Kansas is a right-to-work state: a union contract cannot require you to pay dues or fees to keep your job. Employment is at will: either side may end it at any time, except for an illegal reason such as discrimination or retaliation, or against a contract. source
Also worth knowing in Kansas
- Kansas state overtime kicks in only after 46 hours a week (not 40), and only for workers outside the federal FLSA. source
- Cities and counties cannot set a higher minimum wage or require paid leave (K.S.A. 12-16,130, 2013). source
- An employer that willfully withholds final wages owes a penalty of 1% of unpaid wages per day after the eighth day, up to 100% of the wages. source