OK · state labor law, 2026
Oklahoma labor laws: minimum wage, overtime, leave, final pay and breaks
Oklahoma leans on federal law for most pay rules and keeps a narrow state act of its own, with firm limits on how long an employer can hold your wages.
Oklahoma 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 FLSA rule
- Paid sick leave
- no state law
- employer policy
- Paid family leave
- no program
- FMLA is unpaid
Oklahoma's minimum wage is $7.25 an hour in 2026, the federal rate adopted by state law, and no change is planned. A full-time year at that rate comes to $15,080. The state minimum wage act covers only employers with at least 10 full-time employees or more than $100,000 in annual gross sales, and it does not apply to jobs already covered by the federal FLSA, which reaches most workers anyway. Tipped employees can be paid a cash wage of $2.13 with tips making up the difference. Oklahoma has no overtime statute: time and a half after 40 hours comes from federal law for employers it covers. No state law requires paid sick days, paid family leave or breaks for workers aged 16 and over. Paydays must fall within 11 days after each pay period ends, final wages are due by the next regular payday whether you quit or were fired, and Oklahoma is a right-to-work state.
Gross pay for this week in Oklahoma
$290
Time and a half after 40 hours in a week (federal rule)
| Minimum wage in Oklahoma 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 for adults (minors only) |
| 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.
A state wage act with a narrow reach
Oklahoma's minimum wage law applies to an employer that has at least 10 full-time employees, or the equivalent, or grosses more than $100,000 a year, and it steps aside wherever the FLSA already applies. In practice, the federal law is the one that protects most Oklahoma workers, at the same $7.25. The state act also excludes a long list of jobs, including part-time work under 25 hours a week, students and farm workers. A very small employer outside both laws may fall through the gaps, so a worker at a tiny business with an unusually low wage should ask the Department of Labor which law, if any, covers the job.
Tipped workers receive at least the federal cash wage of $2.13. Tips are expected to carry the rest of the way to $7.25 an hour.
The 11-day payday rule
Oklahoma requires employers to set regular paydays no later than 11 days after the end of each pay period, and gives them 3 extra days after the scheduled payday to issue the money. A pay period that closes on the last day of the month must therefore lead to a payday by the 11th of the next month, with payment allowed until the 14th at the latest. The same schedule governs the last paycheck. The Department of Labor says an employer may wait until the next regularly designated payday whether an employee quit or was fired, so there is no same-day obligation even after a dismissal.
Vacation pay counts as wages only when it was agreed with the employee or is part of an established policy. If the policy promises payout, the balance belongs in the final paycheck; if it is silent or excludes payout, the state law does not add one.
If you were let go today
Employment rule
At will
| Final pay | by the next regular payday |
| Unused vacation | per written policy |
| Right-to-work state | yes |
Overtime comes from Washington
No Oklahoma statute requires overtime. An employer covered by the FLSA must pay non-exempt staff one and a half times the regular rate for hours past 40 in a workweek. A welder earning $17.50 who works five 10-hour days logs 50 hours: 40 at straight time and 10 at $26.25, $962.50 in all. The salary test for exempt employees is the federal $684 a week. Employers outside the FLSA owe no overtime under Oklahoma law.
Unions, breaks and leave
Oklahoma's right-to-work provision bars requiring anyone to join, stay out of, or pay a labor organization as a condition of a job. Employment is at will. Workers aged 16 or older have no legal right to a meal or rest break under either state or federal law, though 14- and 15-year-olds must get break and lunch periods under the child labor rules. There is no state paid sick leave or paid family leave; the federal FMLA protects eligible employees for up to 12 weeks without pay. The right-to-work map shows the other states with similar laws.
Right to work in your state
Oklahoma
Right-to-work state
| Can a contract require a fee? | No |
| Dues over a year | $600 |
| Public sector | Janus (2018): no fee can be required |
Oklahoma employment rules at a glance, 2026
Minimum wage schedule
| From | Who it covers | Rate | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| July 24, 2009 | Employers with 10+ full-time employees or gross sales over $100,000 | $7.25 | State law adopts the federal minimum wage; unchanged throughout 2026 |
Workers covered by both laws get the higher rate. Many categories excluded from the state act (e.g. part-time under 25 h/week, students, farm workers); the state act does not apply to employment covered by the FLSA. Read the Oklahoma rule.
Overtime
Time and a half after 40 hours in a week. The salary test for exempt employees is the federal $684 a week. No state overtime law; overtime is governed by the federal FLSA. source
Sick leave and family leave
Oklahoma has no statewide paid sick leave law for private employers; leave depends on the employer's policy or a city ordinance. No statewide paid sick leave law for private employers.
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: Vacation pay counts as wages only when agreed or provided in an established employer policy.. source vacation rule
Meal and rest breaks
No meal break is required for adults by state law. No paid rest break is required for adults. 14- and 15-year-olds must receive break and lunch periods under Oklahoma child labor law. source
Unions and dismissal
Oklahoma 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 Oklahoma
- Oklahoma's minimum wage law only covers employers with at least 10 full-time employees or more than $100,000 in annual gross sales, and does not apply where the federal FLSA already applies. source
- Employers must set regular paydays within 11 days after the end of each pay period, with 3 extra days allowed to issue payment. source