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Mississippi, like other states in the United States of America, abides by a range of labor laws, which regulate employee-employer relationships and aim to create a healthy work environment in which every participant’s rights are protected. These labor laws feature cover everything from employee working hours to leave and break time.
Employees and employers in Mississippi, fondly known as the Magliona State, need to be aware of and understand these state-specific labor laws – understanding helps avoid penalties and legal issues caused by noncompliance.
In this article, we’ll cover all the key facets of Mississippi’s labor laws, offering a strong grounding in the basics to help you (and your workforce) stay safe and compliant.
Let’s dive in…
Meals and Breaks in Mississippi
Mississippi has no state-specific laws compelling or mandating employers in Mississippi to provide employees with breaks – meal or otherwise.
The state leaves it to employers’ discretion as to whether or not to provide meal and rest breaks. If employers do choose to provide meal breaks, federal laws will apply. This means breaks of up to 20 minutes must be paid, but longer meal breaks (over 20 minutes) can be unpaid or compensated, depending on the employer’s choice.
Despite the lack of state break regulations, many Mississippi employers often choose to provide breaks, typically for full-time employees at the least. These breaks are scheduled so employees do not perform work duties during their rest periods, and are typically unpaid.
Meal breaks are not typically expected to last more than thirty minutes, and they’re often provided in the middle of a full-time (7.5 hour) shift.
If a company’s policy states employees can take unpaid meal breaks, the employee should not handle any work during their rest period. However, if an employee decides to skip a meal break, their employer is not required to let them leave work early.
Leave and Paid Time Off (PTO) in Mississippi
Mississippi categorizes employee leave or paid time off (PTO) as either required or non-required leave. Required leaves are paid or unpaid times away from work employers are required to provide to employees. Non-required leave is, naturally, an optional benefit employers may or may not choose to offer.
Mississippi Required Leave
Employers must provide the following leaves to their employees:
Family and Medical Leave
This type of eave is admistered by Mississippi under the federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA). This leave must be provided as long as the employees meet certain criteria or eligibility requirements.
For an employee to be eligible for the family and medical leave, they should have:
- Worked for their employer for a year
- Have performed over 1,250 hours of work over the past year
Eligible employees can take up to 12 weeks of job-protected unpaid leave per year. This leave is typically claimed in situations such as self-care (when injured or seriously ill) for themselves or to care for a immediate family member with a severe health condition. Family and medical leave can also be used to take care of a newborn or foster child, or to complete an adoption process.
FMLA also requires employers provide eligible employees involved in military service with up to 26 weeks of unpaid leave to care for a member of the Armed Forces. This extended period only applies if the Armed Forces member is the employee or their immediate family member (spouse, parent, child, or next of kin).
All employers with at least 50 employees must follow FMLA regulations.
Holiday Leave
All public employees are entitled to paid or unpaid leave on specified public holidays.
A list of recognized federal holidays in Mississippi includes:
- New Year’s Day - 1 January
- Martin Luther King Jr. Civil Rights Day - Third Monday in January
- Washington’s Birthday - Third Monday in February
- Memorial Day - Last Monday in May
- Independence Day- 4th of July
- Labor Day - First Monday in October
- Columbus Day - Second Monday in October
- Election Day - Every other year
- Veterans Day - 11th of November
- Thanksgiving Day - Fourth Thursday in November
- Christmas Day - 25th of December.
Jury Duty Leave
Mississippi mandates employers allow their employees time off work responsibilities when summoned by the state to perform jury duties. The leave provided should be sufficient for the period of jury duty service.
Military Leave
The federal Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Act (USERRA) regulates and governs certain leave types for military servicemembers.
Any employee serving in the US Armed Forces, National Guard, or state militias isentitled to take time off work to fulfill their service. These employees’ jobs are protected while serving – the law guarantees them the right to resume their jobs with the same pay and benefits they would have received if they were not called to military service.
Crime Victim Leave
Mississippi requires employers provide leave to employees who become victims of any criminal activity. This leave covers several the time needed to participate in legal processes and responding to any subpoenas. The state also mandates that employers cannot penalize or discriminate against the employee when they return to work.
Mississippi Non-Required Leave
They leaves employers in Mississippi are not required to provide include:
Sick Leave
Employers in Mississippi are not obligated or mandated to provide any form sick leave to employees in the state. However, many employers choose to provide paid or unpaid sick leave as an incentive to attract top-tier employees. If employers choose to provide sick leave, they must do so in accordance with clearly set policies.
Vacation Leave
Mississippi does not mandate the provision of vacation leave. Like sick leave, many employers offer this option as a recruitment and retention incentive. If employers offer vacation leave, their employment contracts should outline all relevant details.
Voting Time Leave
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💡Did You Know?
A 2013 study found that working mothers with shift work had a lower prevalence of using breast pumping breaks than non-shift workers (27.2% vs. 44.0%).
Mississippi does not have any laws requiring employers provide employees with paid or unpaid leave to exercise their voting rights.
Bereavement Leave
Mississippi does not make it mandatory for employers to provide bereavement leave.
Holiday Leave
Mississippi has no state-specific law requiring private employers provide employees with paid or unpaid holiday leave.
Employers are also not required to to compensate an employee beyond their normal pay rate for working on holidays, unless they work overtime. If an employer chooses to provide either paid or unpaid holiday leave, it must comply with the terms of its established policies or employment contracts.
Overtime Regulations in Mississippi
According to both federal and Mississippi state law, any number of hours beyond 40 hours in a week counts as overtime.
The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) stipulates that employees who work overtime are eligible to receive 1.5 times their regular hourly rate. For example, a minimum wage employee who earns \$7.25 an hour would receive overtime pay of \$10.875 (typically rounded to \$10.88) an hour.
The FLSA overtime rule only covers non-exempt employees. Certain job categories, including executives, professionals, and administrative employees, are exempt from overtime pay depending on their job description and salary.
There are four major categories of exempt employees not covered by overtime law, with many sub-categories beneath them
- White-collar employees (bona fide executives, administratives, and professionals earning at least $684 per week)
- Outside salespeople earning at least $684 per week
- Computing employees
- Minors and young workers
- Agricultural and farm workers
- Seasonal workers
- US government services workers
- Domestic service workers operating in or about private homes
- Babysitters or other live-in laborers working in an employer's home
- Companions of elderly, sick, or convalescing persons
- Employees working in newspaper delivery
- Full-time and vocational students
- Employees with disabilities
- Employees in certain nonprofit and educational organizations with exemption certificates from the Department of Labor (these organizations’ employees can be paid 85% of the applicable minimum wage rate)
- Independent contractors
- Transportation workers
- Employees of motion picture theaters
- Announcers, news editors, and chief engineers of certain non-metropolitan broadcasting stations
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Wages and Benefits in Mississippi
Regular Minimum Wage
Tipped Minimum Wage
Tipped Minimum Wage
$2.13
Subminimum Wage
$7.25
Employees in Mississippi are subject to federal minimum wage laws.
Federal laws currently set the minimum wage at $7.25 for non-tipped employees, $2.13 for tipped employees, and $7.25 for subminimum wage employees.
Employers cannot offer lower hourly rates to any non-exempt employees.
The tipped minimum wage applies to tipped employees who typically work in food service or other service businesses, such as servers, bartenders, waiters, delivery people, etc. These workers are entitled to a tipped minimum wage of $2.13.
The tipped minimum wage must combine with an employee’s earned tips amounts to at equal at least $7.25 in hourly wages. If the combined wage is still below the minimum wage, employers must make up the difference.
Mississippi laws permit tip pooling. Tip pooling refers to redistributing all tips collected during one shift to active employees, even those who don’t regularly receive cash gratuities, such as employees who work in the back of the house (such as chefs and dishwashers).
Subminimum Wage
There are no state-specific rules guiding subminimum wages in Mississippi. As such, federal rules.
Subminimum wage is typically provided to employees in the following categories:
- Minors (employees under the age of 18)
- Employees with disabilities
- Apprentices
- Trainees
- Learners
- Students (workers and learners)
Mississippi employers cannot pay less than the standard hourly rate to any of the abovementioned employees. The standard and approved subminimum wage in Mississippi is $7.25, effectively identical to the ordinary minimum wage.
Payment Laws in Mississippi
Mississippi mandates employers must pay employees at least once every two weeks. Compensation should be delivered no later than 13 days after the end of a pay period.
This paycheck law only applies to public labor or public service corporations and employers engaged in manufacturing, provided they have at least 50 employees.
Deductions From wages in Mississippi
There are no state-specific laws regarding employee pay deductions, but Mississippi employers must provide itemized statements of deductions for each pay period.
Employers are allowed deduct any amount from employee paychecks for these reasons:
- Cash shortages
- Lost or stolen property
- Damage to property
- Required uniforms
- Required tools
- Any other items necessary for employees to perform their job
Federal law allows employers to make deductions for the reasons above if the deductions do not cause an employee to earn less than the federal minimum wage in a pay period.
Final Paychecks
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💡Did You Know?
31% of employees left their job within six months in 2023.
Mississippi employers must issue final paychecks to any terminated employee inclusive of all wages and benefits. There are, however, no regulations regarding the timeline in which this paycheck must be issued. Employers are encouraged to establish terms for final paycheck payments in their employee contracts.
Prevailing Wages in Mississippi
Mississippi does not have its own prevailing wage laws. If federal funding is involved in the public works construction project, then Davis-Bacon requirements may apply.
Prevailing wages are the minimum wages and benefits paid to workers on public works projects in Mississippi. These wages are set by the Mississippi Department of Employment Security and are based on wages paid to workers in similar jobs in the same area.
Prevailing wages apply to all laborers, workers, or mechanics employed under a public work contract. Employers can find current prevailing wage rates in Mississippi by visiting the Mississippi Department of Employment Security (MDES) website.
Hiring Practices in Mississippi
Mississippi prohibits employers from making hiring decisions based on certain criteria or factors. The main anti-discrimination factors include:
- Race
- Color
- Age
- Gender
- Gender-related identity
- Religion
- National origin
- Pregnancy
- Genetic information (including family medical history)
- Physical/mental disability
- Child/spousal support withholding
- Military or veteran status
Employees who suspect they were discriminated against should file a formal complaint.
Employers in Mississippi should be aware of the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA), which prohibits age discrimination against employees over 40. Employers must also comply with federal laws such as the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA), which prohibits the use of genetic information in employment decisions.
Background Checks and Drug Testing Laws
Many employers in Mississippi conduct background checks of potential employees. The state has no laws on how criminal activity is gauged in employment decisions. However, these checks should comply with federal laws such as the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) for background checks.
Mississippi also allows employers to conduct drug tests. Drug testing during the hiring process must comply with state law.
Equal Employment Opportunities (EEO)
Employers in Mississippi are expected to provide equal employment opportunities, ensuring that all applicants and employees are treated fairly and without discrimination. This encompasses hiring, promotion, compensation, and other employment-related decisions.
Health and Safety Standards in Mississippi
Mississippi law requires all employers to provide safe and healthy working environments. The primary means of ensuring compliance is the federal Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA).
Under OSHA, employers are expected to:
- Provide proper training and education to all employees upon employment
- Conduct educational and advisory activities to assure safe and healthy working conditions
- Ensuring work premises are free of any hazards that might cause harm to employees
- Regularly undertake safety demonstrations concerning health matters
Enforcement of occupational safety and health standards is handled at the state level by the Mississippi Field Federal Safety and Health Councils as well as by federal OSHA personnel. OSHA inspectors are empowered to conduct various types of inspections, and may accept certain reports from valid parties, to ensure compliance:
- Regular scheduling
- Reports of imminent danger
- Worker complaints
- Referrals from other agencies
- Targeted inspections (aimed at specific high-hazard industries)
- Reports of fatalities
OSHA also provides consultations to help employers create safer workplaces. Employers in Mississippi can request an on-site consultation to identify and correct potential hazards, and to improve overall workplace safety.
MDES oversees other standards for worker safety in Mississippi. Employers can access information and resources related to workplace safety through the MDES website.
Child Labor Laws in Mississippi
Mississippi enforces child labor laws to protect minors from workforce exploitation. These laws prioritize education over work while giving minors the opportunity to earn valuable work experience.
Children under 14 cannot be employed in the state of Mississippi.
Minors under age 16 who wish to work in certain industries must obtain an employment certificate and submit it to their employer. The minor’s school administrator or guidance counselor is responsible for determining if the requesting minor meets the criteria for employment before issuing an employment certificate.
The employment certificate is also known as a work permit. It’s necessary to work in:
- Mills
- Canneries
- Workshops
- Factories
Mississippi also restricts minor employees’ working hours. The maximum number of work hours is regulated for all minors, but differs based on whether or not school is in session.
All minors are covered by the following restrictions when school is in session:
- No work hours during school hours
- No more than 3 work hours in a day
- No more than 18 work hours per week
Minors aged 14 and 15 are allowed to work under the following conditions:
- No more than 8 hours per day
- No more than 44 hours per week in a factory, mill, cannery, or workshop
- No more than 40 hours per week if employed elsewhere
While minors aged 16 and 17 can work under the following conditions:
- No more than 8 hours per day
- No restrictions on maximum hours per week
Minors under 16 are prohibited from working from 7 p.m. to 6 a.m. (night shift or graveyard shift hours) when employed in a mill, factory, workshop, or cannery. This prohibition extends from 7 p.m. to 7 a.m. for other employers..
Prohibited Occupations for Minors
Some prohibited occupations for minors in Mississippi include:
- Mining
- Logging
- Sawmills
- Forest fire prevention
- Packing or processing meat and poultry
- Wrecking operations
- Demolition operations
- Any work with power-driven machinery
- Roofing operations
- Excavation operations
- Work with balers and compactors
- Driving and/or working as outside helpers on motor vehicles
Employment Termination and Resignation in Mississippi
In the absence of employment contracts specifying notice periods, Mississippi generally does not have specific notice requirements for terminating employees.
At-Will Employment and Severance Pay
Mississippi follows the at-will employment doctrine, allowing employers to terminate employees for any reason, as long as it is not discriminatory or in violation of public policy. Employees are also allowed to resign from their positions at any time for any reason.
Mississippi employers are not required to provide severance pay upon termination. Severance pay is typically governed by agreements between employers and employees, as outlined by employment contracts or severance agreements.
While Mississippi generally follows at-will employment, certain exceptions may apply. Employment contracts, collective bargaining agreements, or other written agreements may alter the at-will relationship.
Right-to-Work
Mississippi is a right-to-work state, meaning employees are not required to join or support a union as a condition of their employment.
Unemployment Benefits in Mississippi
Mississippi offers unemployment benefits to terminated workers (under certain conditions) while they search for new employment.
Individuals must be actively applying for jobs to receive weekly unemployment benefits. Beneficiaries must also provide:
- Work history information for the past 18 months (including employer names, addresses, phone numbers, reason for separation, and dates of employment)
- Current contact information
- Driver’s license or state ID number
- Social Security card
To file an unemployment claim, visit the MDES website or call 601-493-9427.
Penalties for Noncompliance in Mississippi
Noncompliance can incur penalties that may become quite severe, depending on the type of violation committed. These penalties can vary from lawsuits and fines to jail time.
The Mississippi Department of Labor (MDOL) helps ensure compliance with labor laws. Employees and concerned individuals can contact either MDOL or MDES to report violations or seek guidance on labor-related matters.
Some penalties for noncompliance in Mississippi may include:
Penalties For OSHA Violations
These penalty amounts below are current as of 2023, and are subject to annual adjustments for inflation.
- Other than serious violations: A violation that has a direct relationship to job safety and health, but probably would not cause death or serious physical harm. A proposed penalty of up to $15,625 for each violation is discretionary.
- Serious violation: A violation for which there is a substantial probability that death or serious physical harm could result and the employer knew, or should have known, of the hazard. A penalty of up to $15,625 for each violation must be proposed.
- Willful violation: A violation that the employer intentionally and knowingly commits. The OSH Act provides that an employer who willfully violates it may be assessed a civil penalty of not more than $156,259 for each violation.
- Failure to abate. When an employer has not corrected a previously cited violation upon re-inspection. The penalty is a maximum of $15,625 per day unabated beyond the abatement date, generally limited to 30 days.
- Repeat violation. A violation of any standard, regulation, rule or order in which, upon re-inspection, a substantially similar violation is found. Repeat violations can bring fines of up to $156,259 for each violation.
Child Labor Violation Penalties
Any person, firm, or corporation – or the superintendent and/or officers of mills, canneries, workshops, factories, or manufacturing establishments – employing or permitting any child to be employed in such establishments shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction, shall be fined no less than fifty dollars ($50.00) and no more than one hundred dollars ($100.00), and may be sentenced to serve time in county jail of no less than ten (10) days and no more than sixty (60) days.
Other Essential Information About Labor Laws in Mississippi
Some other essential information for employers and employees in Mississippi include:
- Whistleblower Protection Laws: These laws protect employees from being penalized for exercising their rights – workers with information about illegal practices or safety hazards can report such problems without fear of losing their jobs or experiencing discrimination. However, Mississippi only extends whistleblower protections to public employees.
- Recordkeeping Laws: Employers must maintain employee records for a minimum of three years. This includes private identifying information, wages details, collective bargaining agreements, and completed copies of I-9s.
Final Thoughts On Mississippi Labor Laws
For employers, our guide can serve as a compass to help you navigate through and understand the intricacies of labor regulations. Employees can arm themselves with the knowledge needed to protect their rights and assert their entitlements.
Labor laws are nuanced and subject to changes.While this guide may be extensive and current when you read it, we still encourage you to seek legal advice for specific questions or concerns. An employment lawyer practicing in Mississippi will generally have the most extensive and up-to-date knowledge of state labor laws and their particularities.
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