NV · state labor law, 2026
Nevada labor laws: minimum wage, overtime, leave, final pay and breaks
Nevada pays daily overtime only to lower-wage workers, gives paid leave that needs no reason, and bans the tip credit in a state built on tipped work.
Nevada and federal rules checked on official sources on · Checked by Radif Partners · How we calculate
- Minimum wage now
- $12.00/h
- statewide
- Next change
- none announced
- checked October 11, 2026
- Tipped cash wage
- full minimum
- no tip credit
- Overtime
- 8 h/day or 40 h/week
- state law
- Paid sick leave
- 1 h per 52 h
- cap 40 h a year
- Paid family leave
- no program
- FMLA is unpaid
Nevada's minimum wage is $12.00 an hour for every employee, a single rate since the two-tier system tied to health benefits ended in July 2024, and the July 2026 bulletin kept it unchanged. Tipped workers in casinos, restaurants and hotels receive the full $12.00 before tips, because Nevada law forbids counting tips toward the minimum. Overtime has a twist found nowhere else: employees earning less than one and a half times the minimum wage, $18.00 an hour, are owed time and a half after 8 hours in a 24-hour period, while everyone non-exempt gets it after 40 hours a week. Employers with 50 or more employees in Nevada must give paid leave that can be used for any reason, about 40 hours a year for a full-time worker. A fired employee is paid immediately; one who quits, by the next payday or within 7 days, whichever comes first.
Gross pay for this week in Nevada
$480
Time and a half after 8 hours in a day or after 40 hours in a week (daily rule only below 1.5 x the minimum wage)
| Minimum wage in Nevada now | $12 an hour |
| Your rate against it | At or above the minimum |
| Overtime: none this week | $0 |
| Paid sick leave earned in a year | 40 hours |
| Breaks owed in a 8-hour shift | 2 x 10 min paid rest |
| Final paycheck if fired | immediately |
| 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 $12. State rule applied. Minimum wage, overtime and leave rules have exceptions by employer size and industry. How this is calculated.
Daily overtime with a wage line
The Nevada rule protects the hourly workers who most often pull long shifts. Below $18.00 an hour, every hour beyond 8 in a 24-hour period is paid at time and a half, unless the employer and employee have agreed in writing to four 10-hour days. At or above that rate, only the weekly 40-hour threshold applies. Compare two workers on four 10-hour shifts: at $16 an hour the daily rule adds 8 overtime hours and the week pays $704; at $20 an hour the same 40 hours are all straight time, $800. The calculator on this page applies the line automatically from the rate you enter. Because the line is set at one and a half times the minimum wage, it moves whenever the minimum wage changes, so check it each July when the Labor Commissioner publishes the annual bulletin.
Compare two states for a full-time minimum wage job
Texas / California, per hour
$7.25 / $16.90
| Full-time year (2,080 h) | $15,080 / $35,152 |
| Gap over a year | $20,072 |
| Paid sick leave law | no / yes |
| Paid family leave program | no / yes |
Tips on top of the full minimum
Nevada is one of the few states where a server, dealer or bartender cannot be paid a reduced cash wage. The employer pays at least $12.00 for every hour, and tips are extra. That matters in a state where hospitality jobs are a large share of employment: a 30-hour week guarantees $360 before a single tip.
Paid leave you do not have to explain
Since January 1, 2020, private employers with 50 or more employees in Nevada have had to provide paid leave at a rate of 0.01923 hours for every hour worked, roughly one hour per 52. The worker does not need to say why the time is taken. Employers may cap carryover and annual use at 40 hours, new businesses are exempt for their first two years, and unused leave is not paid out at the end of the job unless the employer's policy says so. Smaller employers have no such obligation.
Sick leave you earn in a year
Hours earned in a year
30
| Rate | 1 hour per 52 hours worked |
| Cap (typical employer) | 40 hours |
| Weeks to earn one 8-hour day | 13.9 |
Breaks and the end of a job
A continuous 8-hour stretch of work carries a 30-minute meal period, and paid 10-minute rest periods are due for every 4 hours or major fraction, with no rest period required on days under three and a half hours or where only one person is employed. When a job ends, a discharged worker is owed wages immediately, and someone who resigns by the next regular payday or within 7 days, whichever is sooner. Nevada is a right-to-work state and employment is at will. Break rules in other states are often less generous.
Nevada employment rules at a glance, 2026
Minimum wage schedule
| From | Who it covers | Rate | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| July 1, 2025 | Statewide (all employees, regardless of health benefits) | $12.00 | 2026 annual bulletin (posted June 29, 2026) keeps $12.00 from July 1, 2026 |
Workers covered by both laws get the higher rate. Two-tier (health-benefits) minimum wage eliminated as of July 1, 2024 (Ballot Question 2, 2022). Read the Nevada rule.
Overtime
Time and a half after 8 hours in a day or after 40 hours in a week. The salary test for exempt employees is the federal $684 a week. Daily overtime (over 8 hours in a 24-hour period) applies only to employees earning less than 1.5 times the minimum wage ($18.00/hour from July 1, 2026); a mutually agreed 4x10 schedule is excepted. Everyone non-exempt gets overtime after 40 hours/week. source
Sick leave and family leave
Paid sick leave: 0.01923 hours of paid leave per hour worked (about 1 hour per 52 hours, i.e. roughly 40 hours a year full-time); usable for any reason (Private employers with 50+ employees in Nevada; carryover may be capped at 40 hours per benefit year (employer may also limit use to 40 hours per year). Not paid out at separation unless policy says so.), 50 or more employees in Nevada (new employers exempt for first 2 years). General paid leave (not limited to sickness) under NRS 608.0197. 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: immediately. Quitting: by the next regular payday or within 7 days of quitting, whichever is earlier. Vacation: No statute requires payout of vacation or paid leave at separation; follows employer policy.. source
Meal and rest breaks
Meal: 30-minute meal period for a continuous 8-hour period. Rest: Paid 10-minute rest period per 4 hours worked or major fraction thereof (none if under 3.5 hours a day); not required where only one person is employed. source
Unions and dismissal
Nevada 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 Nevada
- Nevada gives private-sector workers at employers with 50+ employees paid leave they can use for any reason, without having to give a reason. source
- Lower-paid workers (under $18.00/hour in 2026) earn overtime after 8 hours in a 24-hour period, not just after 40 hours a week. source
- Employers cannot count tips toward the minimum wage: tipped workers get the full $12.00 plus their tips. source
- Nevada's paid leave law (SB 312) took effect January 1, 2020. source