State labor lawRead at source, 24 September 2026

Louisiana Labor Laws for Employers (2026): Breaks, Overtime, Final Pay and Hiring

Louisiana has no state minimum wage, overtime or adult break law, so the federal rules apply: $7.25 an hour and time and a half after 40 hours a week. Final pay is due by the next regular payday or within 15 days, whichever comes first, whether the employee quits or is fired, and missing it can cost up to 90 days of penalty wages. Minors under 16 must get a 30-minute meal break in any five-hour period, and every minor needs an employment certificate on file. There is no state paid sick leave law, and cities and parishes are barred from creating one.

Louisiana employment law at a glance

Louisiana leaves most wage-and-hour questions to federal law. It has no state minimum wage, no state overtime rule and no adult break requirement, and it bars cities and parishes from adding their own minimum wage or leave mandates. Where the state does act, on final pay, minors and paydays, its rules are specific and carry real penalties. Each row links to the statute or agency page we read.

Louisiana break laws

Louisiana does not require meal or rest breaks for employees 16 and older. Federal law does not require them either, so for most adult hourly staff, breaks are a matter of your own policy. What federal law does control is pay: short breaks of 5 to 20 minutes that you offer must be paid, while a bona fide meal period of 30 minutes or more, when the employee is fully relieved of duty, can be unpaid (29 CFR 785.18 and 785.19).

Breaks for minors changed in 2024

The one Louisiana break rule is for young workers, and it is narrower than many summaries say. Since Act 603 of 2024, La. R.S. 23:213 applies to minors under 16: they may not work any five-hour period without a meal interval of at least 30 minutes. That interval is not counted as working time. The statute builds in small tolerances: working up to 10 minutes past the five hours before the break, or a break of at least 20 minutes, is treated as too small to count as a violation. The break must be recorded in your normal timekeeping system, and if a time edit is needed, both the minor and the manager must acknowledge it in writing. Sixteen- and 17-year-olds are no longer covered by this rule.

Lactation breaks

We did not find a Louisiana statute giving private-sector employees lactation breaks. The federal PUMP for Nursing Mothers Act applies: reasonable break time and a private place, other than a bathroom, to express milk for up to one year after the child’s birth. For every state side by side, see meal break laws by state.

Louisiana overtime laws

Louisiana has no state overtime statute. Employers covered by the federal Fair Labor Standards Act pay time and a half the regular rate for hours over 40 in a workweek, with no daily overtime. Exemptions, including the executive, administrative and professional exemptions and their salary test, follow federal rules only; Louisiana does not set its own salary threshold. Private employers cannot give compensatory time off instead of overtime pay. Our overtime laws by state page shows where neighboring states differ.

Paying employees in Louisiana

Minimum wage

Louisiana has no minimum wage law of its own. Employers covered by the FLSA pay the federal $7.25 an hour, and tipped employees can be paid a $2.13 cash wage if tips bring them to $7.25. La. R.S. 23:642 prohibits any local government from setting a minimum wage that private employers must pay, so New Orleans, Baton Rouge and every other parish follow the same floor. More on our Louisiana minimum wage page.

Paydays

Under La. R.S. 23:633, employers must tell employees at hire what they will be paid, how, and how often, along with any later changes. An employer that never designates paydays must pay on the 1st and 16th of the month or as close to them as practicable. Manufacturers, oil drilling and mining employers with 10 or more employees, and public service corporations, must pay at least twice a month, roughly two weeks apart; that rule does not reach exempt staff, and outside public service corporations it does not cover clerical staff or salespeople. Employers must also post the Louisiana Works notice on pay agreements.

Final paychecks and penalty wages

Louisiana’s final-pay deadline is the same short window whether the employee is fired or quits (La. R.S. 23:631, last amended in 2025):

• Discharged: on or before the next regular payday, or no later than 15 days after the discharge, whichever comes first.
• Resigned: on or before the next regular payday for the pay cycle in which the employee was working, or no later than 15 days after the resignation, whichever comes first.
• Vacation pay: earned, unused vacation is an amount then due if the employee was eligible and had accrued it under your policy, and a policy cannot forfeit vacation already earned.

The penalty for missing it is steep. An employer that fails to pay can owe penalty wages of up to 90 days’ pay at the employee’s daily rate, or full wages from the demand until payment if that is less, plus reasonable attorney fees. A good-faith dispute over the amount limits liability to the disputed wages and interest, and the undisputed portion must be paid on time regardless. See final paycheck laws by state and PTO payout laws by state.

Louisiana hiring laws

Louisiana’s hiring rules are light compared with most states, but three of them land before the first shift.

Work authorization: E-Verify is a choice, not a mandate

Louisiana is often listed as an E-Verify state. It is not a mandate for private employers. La. R.S. 23:995 bars hiring anyone not authorized to work in the United States, and gives employers two ways to show compliance: verify each employee through E-Verify, or keep a copy of a picture ID plus one listed document (such as a U.S. birth certificate or naturalization certificate). Using E-Verify gives a presumption of good faith. Either way, the federal Form I-9 is still required for every hire. More on E-Verify requirements by state.

New-hire reporting

Report every new hire and rehire to the Louisiana Works New Hire Registry within 20 days of the hire date.

Hiring minors

Every employer of a minor must obtain and keep on file an employment certificate for each one, accessible at or near the job site (La. R.S. 23:182). The certificate is issued by the local school superintendent or a school principal through the Louisiana Works online system, signed by the minor and the issuer, and handed to the employer (La. R.S. 23:183). Hours limits apply on top: minors under 16 may not work more than 8 hours a day or more than six consecutive days in a week, more than 3 hours on a school day or 18 hours in a school week, or between 7 p.m. and 7 a.m. (9 p.m. from June 1 through Labor Day). Sixteen-year-olds who have not graduated may not work 11 p.m. to 5 a.m., and 17-year-olds midnight to 5 a.m., before a school day (La. R.S. 23:215). The Louisiana Works Employment of Minors booklet collects these rules; our child labor laws by state page compares them.

Background checks, pay history and non-competes

Louisiana has no ban-the-box, salary history or pay-transparency law for private employers, so federal rules (EEOC guidance on criminal records and the Fair Credit Reporting Act for background reports) set the limits. Non-competes are void unless they fit La. R.S. 23:921: for an employee, that means an agreement limited to specified parishes or municipalities where the employer carries on a like business, for no more than two years after the job ends.

Paid leave in Louisiana

Louisiana does not require private employers to offer paid sick leave, vacation or paid family leave, and La. R.S. 23:642 prevents any parish or city from requiring a minimum number of vacation or sick days, paid or unpaid. Employers with 50 or more employees are covered by the federal Family and Medical Leave Act. Louisiana law does require employers covered by its pregnancy discrimination law to allow pregnancy-related leave for a reasonable period, up to four months where the employee is disabled by pregnancy or childbirth, and to post a written notice of pregnancy accommodation rights (La. R.S. 23:342). If you do offer vacation, remember that earned vacation is payable at separation.

Posters and records

Louisiana requires state posters in addition to the federal set, including the pay-agreement notice under La. R.S. 23:633. Our labor law posters by state page links to the Louisiana Workforce Commission’s poster list. Employers of minors must also keep the employment certificate for each minor accessible at or near the work location.

Local rules in Louisiana

Louisiana preempts local minimum wage and leave mandates for private employers (La. R.S. 23:642), so there is no New Orleans minimum wage or sick leave ordinance that private employers must follow. City contracting and public-employee rules can differ, but for a private employer the state and federal rules on this page are the whole picture.

What this means when you’re hiring hourly workers in Louisiana

Because Louisiana’s legal floor is the federal one, it tells you almost nothing about what a Louisiana hire costs. Pay is set by the local market, and candidates compare posted wages side by side. Nothing requires you to put pay in a Louisiana job ad, but for hourly roles leaving it out usually costs applicants: pay, shift and location belong in the first line. Our job ad copywriting guide shows how.

Two Louisiana rules are worth building into your process. If you hire teenagers, keep the employment certificate on file before the first shift, and schedule meal breaks for under-16s. And because a late final check can cost up to 90 days of wages, make sure payroll knows the 15-day limit. To model the full cost of a role, use the employee cost calculator. Boostpoint runs social job ads for frontline employers with a short in-app application; in our 2026 benchmark, the median campaign cost $13.88 per applicant.

Frequently asked questions

Sources: Louisiana Revised Statutes Title 23 (legis.la.gov), Louisiana Workforce Commission, U.S. Department of Labor. Read at source 24 September 2026.