Mississippi — Hiring & Onboarding

Mississippi follows the employment-at-will doctrine as a matter of common law. Absent an express employment contract, either the employer or employee may terminate the employment relationship at any time, with or without cause, and with or without notice. This rule has been applied by Mississippi courts since 1858 and remains the default for all employment relationships in the state unless modified by contract, statute, or public policy exception.

Source: Brandi's Hope Cmty. Servs., LLC v. Walters, 391 So. 3d 162, 166 (Miss. 2024)

Mississippi requires all employers doing business in the state to report newly hired and rehired employees to the Mississippi State Directory of New Hires within 15 days of the employee's hire date. This deadline is stricter than the federal 20-day requirement under the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 (PRWORA). The reporting obligation is codified in Mississippi Code § 43-19-46 and § 93-11-101, and applies to public, private, non-profit, and government employers.

Who must be reported. Employers must report:

• New employees — all employees who reside or work in Mississippi to whom the employer anticipates paying wages, salary, or commission. This includes employees who work only one day, even if they are terminated before the employer fulfills the reporting requirement.
• Rehires or recalls — employees who return to work after being laid off, furloughed, separated, granted leave without pay, or terminated from employment for at least 60 consecutive days.
• Temporary employees — temporary staffing agencies must report workers who sign a W-4 and report to an assignment. The worker need only be reported once per W-4; the agency does not report the same worker each time the worker is placed with a new client, unless the worker has a break in service requiring a new W-4.

Independent contractors are exempt from the reporting requirement, though the Mississippi Department of Human Services (MDHS) accepts voluntary reports for independent contractors.

Required information. Each report must contain the employee's name, address, Social Security number, and date of birth; and the employer's name, address, and federal and state withholding tax identification numbers (FEIN). Employers may submit a copy of the employee's W-4 form or its equivalent.

Reporting methods. Mississippi offers electronic reporting (through the State Directory of New Hires website, available 24/7, or via file upload/FTP), mail, or fax. Employers that report electronically on a bi-monthly basis must submit reports twice per month, 12 to 16 days apart.

Penalties. Employers that fail to report a new hire face a civil penalty of up to $25 per employee not reported. If the failure results from a conspiracy between the employer and employee to not supply the required report or to supply a false or incomplete report, the penalty increases to $500 per employee. Appeals of penalties are governed by Mississippi Code § 43-19-58.

Purpose. The new hire reporting program supports child support enforcement by accelerating income-withholding orders and locating noncustodial parents. It also helps detect fraudulent unemployment insurance, workers' compensation, and welfare benefit payments.

Mississippi's new hire reporting is distinct from the voluntary reporting program administered by the Mississippi Department of Employment Security (MDES), which is designed to reduce overpayments of unemployment compensation. That MDES program is separate and does not satisfy the mandatory MDHS new hire reporting obligation under § 43-19-46.

Source: Mississippi Department of Human Services — For Employers (Miss. Code § 43-19-46; § 93-11-101)

Mississippi's limited public policy exceptions to at-will employment — McArn v. Allied Bruce-Terminix

Mississippi recognizes a narrow public policy exception to the at-will employment doctrine under the Mississippi Supreme Court case McArn v. Allied Bruce-Terminix Co., 626 So. 2d 603 (Miss. 1993). Under McArn, an employer may not lawfully terminate an employee for either of two specific, court-recognized reasons:

1. Refusing to participate in illegal acts:

• An employer cannot discharge an employee because the employee refused to engage in illegal activity on the job. The protected refusal must concern acts that are criminal offenses under law; merely disagreeing with employer conduct, or refusing to violate internal company policy, does not trigger protection. The McArn exception applies, for example, where an employee is instructed to commit a crime (such as falsifying regulatory records) and refuses.

2. Reporting illegal acts of the employer ("whistleblowing"):

• An employer is also prohibited from terminating an employee in retaliation for the employee reporting the employer's illegal acts — but the exception covers only reports of actual criminal activities, and the report must be made either externally to authorities or internally to company management. The protected activity must involve criminal conduct (fraud, safety violations amounting to crimes, etc.), not merely regulatory or civil infractions. Mississippi courts have declined to extend McArn to cover ethical disagreements, breaches of contract, or non-criminal regulatory violations.

Scope and limitations:

• The McArn exception applies to both private and public employers, but courts have described it as narrow. Claims under McArn do not require a written employment contract, and an employer's violation of "public policy" for these purposes is essentially limited to actual criminal conduct.
• No Mississippi statute codifies broader whistleblower protection for private-sector employees. Some categories of public-sector employees may have additional statutory protections, but these are not extensions of McArn itself.

Key reference:

• McArn remains controlling law; later cases (e.g., DeCarlo v. Bonus Stores, Inc., 989 So. 2d 351 (Miss. 2008)) reaffirm its narrow application: only refusal to commit, or reporting of, an employer's criminal acts are grounds for this exception.

Source: McArn v. Allied Bruce-Terminix Co., 626 So. 2d 603 (Miss. 1993)

Mississippi law requires every employer in the state—including private businesses, public agencies, contractors, and subcontractors—to use the federal E-Verify program (the "status verification system") to confirm the employment eligibility of all new employees. This requirement is codified in the Mississippi Employment Protection Act (MEPA), Miss. Code Ann. § 71-11-3.

Coverage and phased deadlines:

• All Mississippi employers, regardless of size, must use E-Verify for each new hire who will be employed in the state (see § 71-11-3(3)).
• The requirement was phased in by size:
• Employers with 250 or more employees (including state/local agencies and public contractors): by July 1, 2008
• 100–249 employees: by July 1, 2009
• 30–99 employees: by July 1, 2010
• Fewer than 30 employees: by July 1, 2011 (now all employers)
• Contractors and subcontractors providing services to public employers must verify their own employees and ensure their subcontractors do the same (§ 71-11-3(2)).
• There is a very narrow exemption for private homeowners who hire individuals for personal, noncommercial work at the homeowner's residence (§ 71-11-3(8)(iii)).
• Employers are not liable for violations if they hire persons referred by the Mississippi Department of Employment Security or a federal/state program that requires status verification (§ 71-11-3(8)(i)-(ii)).

Penalties for noncompliance:

• Knowingly hiring or contracting with unauthorized workers, or failing to use E-Verify for required hires, can subject employers to:
• Cancellation of applicable public contracts;
• Bar from public contracting for up to three years;
• Suspension or revocation of the employer’s business license or certificate for up to one year (§ 71-11-3(5)-(7)).
• Public employers, contractors, or subcontractors violating E-Verify rules may also be liable to the state for costs incurred due to the violation (id.).

Timing:

• Mississippi law does not specify a state-imposed timeline to complete E-Verify. Employers must adhere to the federal requirement to initiate E-Verify no later than the third business day after the employee starts work for pay (see 8 C.F.R. § 274a.2(b)).

For federal E-Verify mechanics, see the United States Hiring & Onboarding guide.

Source: Miss. Code Ann. § 71-11-3 (SB2988, as sent to Governor 2008)