No state minimum wage — federal minimum applies
Mississippi has not enacted a state minimum wage law. The federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour applies to employers and employees covered by the Fair Labor Standards Act. Employers not covered by the FLSA are not subject to any state-mandated minimum wage requirement in Mississippi.
Source: Mississippi Department of Employment Security, Job Searching FAQs
No state overtime law — federal FLSA standard applies
Mississippi has not enacted a state overtime law. Covered employers must comply with the federal Fair Labor Standards Act, which requires overtime pay at 1.5 times the regular rate for all hours worked over 40 in a workweek. Mississippi employers subject to the FLSA follow the federal standard with no additional state-specific overtime thresholds or requirements.
Wage payment frequency — manufacturing and public service employers
Mississippi imposes wage payment frequency requirements on two narrow categories of employers under Mississippi Code § 71-1-35: (1) any entity engaged in manufacturing of any kind and employing 50 or more employees and employing public labor, and (2) every public service corporation (such as utilities) doing business in the state. These covered employers must make full payment to employees for services performed at least once every two weeks, or twice during each calendar month, or on the second and fourth Saturday of each month.
Payment lag time. The statute sets different lag windows for the two categories. Manufacturing employers meeting the 50+ employee and public-labor criteria must include in each payment all wages due for labor performed up to not more than 10 days before the date of payment. Public service corporations have a slightly longer lag window: they must pay for labor performed up to not more than 15 days before the payment date.
"Employing public labor" — a conjunctive requirement. The phrase "employing public labor" in § 71-1-35 modifies the manufacturing category; it is not a standalone category. The statute's text reads "engaged in manufacturing of any kind in this state employing as many as fifty (50) or more employees and employing public labor" (emphasis added). A manufacturing employer must satisfy both the 50-employee threshold and the public-labor criterion to be covered. Neither the Mississippi Code nor published case law defines "public labor" for purposes of § 71-1-35. Employers uncertain whether they fall within this category should seek a definitive interpretation from the Mississippi Department of Employment Security or legal counsel.
Exempt employees. The statute does not apply to individuals employed in a bona fide executive, administrative, or professional capacity. Mississippi Code § 71-1-35 incorporates this exemption by reference, mirroring the same categories exempt from federal FLSA overtime requirements, though it does not cite 29 C.F.R. Part 541 by name.
Employers not covered. Mississippi does not impose any wage payment frequency requirement on employers outside the two categories specified in § 71-1-35. Employers in retail, hospitality, professional services, construction (unless classified as manufacturing and employing public labor), agriculture, and other sectors may set their own pay schedules without state-law constraint, subject only to any applicable federal requirements.
Source: Miss. Code Ann. § 71-1-35
Final paycheck timing — no state-specific deadline
Mississippi has not enacted a state statute governing when employers must pay final wages to separated employees. Mississippi Code Title 71 (Labor and Industry) contains no provision establishing a deadline for final paychecks upon resignation, termination, or layoff. In the absence of state law, Mississippi employers must comply with federal wage-payment requirements under the Fair Labor Standards Act.
Federal FLSA timing standard applies. The FLSA requires employers to pay all wages earned but does not impose a specific deadline for final paychecks. The U.S. Department of Labor's guidance provides that "employers are not required by federal law to give former employees their final paycheck immediately" and that "wages required by the FLSA are due on the regular payday for the pay period covered." Under this federal standard, Mississippi employers must pay separated employees' final wages by the employer's next regularly scheduled payday following the last pay period in which the employee worked.
No distinction by reason for separation. The federal FLSA timing standard applies uniformly regardless of whether the employee resigned, was terminated for cause, or was laid off. Unlike many states that impose immediate or accelerated payment deadlines for involuntary terminations, Mississippi draws no such distinction. Final wages are due on the next regular payday in all separation scenarios.
Contents of final paycheck. The final paycheck must include all wages earned for hours worked through the employee's last day. Under the FLSA, this includes regular wages and any earned compensation owed for work performed. Mississippi law does not require payout of accrued but unused vacation or paid-time-off balances upon separation. Whether such balances must be paid depends on the employer's written policy, an employment contract, or a collective bargaining agreement. Absent a contractual obligation to pay unused PTO, it is not treated as "wages" that must be paid under federal law.
Relationship to Mississippi Code § 71-1-35. Employers subject to Mississippi's ongoing wage-payment-frequency statute—certain manufacturing employers with 50 or more employees employing public labor, and public service corporations—must follow the bi-weekly or semi-monthly payment schedules and lag-time limits of § 71-1-35 during active employment. Section 71-1-35 does not, however, establish a separate or shorter deadline for final paychecks upon separation. Upon an employee's separation, covered employers follow the same FLSA standard: final wages are due on the next regularly scheduled payday.
No confirmed state penalty statute. A search of Mississippi Code Title 71 and guidance from the Mississippi Department of Employment Security reveals no state-specific civil or criminal penalty for late payment of final wages as of 2026-06-01. Employees who are not paid all wages earned may pursue remedies under the FLSA, which permits recovery of unpaid wages plus liquidated damages and attorney's fees under 29 U.S.C. § 216(b).
Source: U.S. Department of Labor, Last Paycheck
Source: U.S. Department of Labor, Handy Reference Guide to the Fair Labor Standards Act
Wage deductions — no state-specific restrictions; federal FLSA minimum-wage floor applies
Mississippi has not enacted a statute governing what deductions employers may make from employee paychecks. Mississippi Code Title 71 (Labor and Industry) contains no provision restricting wage deductions, requiring employee consent for deductions, or otherwise regulating paycheck deductions for uniforms, cash register shortages, equipment damage, or other employer-provided items. In the absence of state law, Mississippi employers are subject only to federal restrictions under the Fair Labor Standards Act.
Federal FLSA deduction floor. The FLSA does not prohibit employers from deducting amounts from employee paychecks for items such as uniforms, tools, cash register shortages, damages to employer property, or financial losses. However, the FLSA imposes a critical floor: no deduction may reduce an employee's wages below the federal minimum wage ($7.25 per hour as of July 24, 2009) or cut into overtime compensation required by the Act (time-and-one-half for hours over 40 in a workweek). This restriction applies regardless of whether the deduction is for an item primarily benefiting the employer or the employee, and regardless of whether the economic loss was caused by the employee's negligence.
Deduction mechanics and the minimum-wage calculation. The FLSA minimum-wage floor is tested on a workweek-by-workweek basis. For example, if an employee subject to the $7.25 federal minimum wage is paid exactly $7.25 per hour, the employer may not make any deduction from the employee's wages for uniforms, shortages, or similar items, because doing so would reduce the employee's effective hourly rate below the statutory minimum. If the same employee is instead paid $7.75 per hour and works 30 hours in the workweek, the maximum legal deduction is $15.00 ($0.50 per hour above minimum × 30 hours). Employers may prorate deductions over multiple pay periods, provided the prorated amount does not reduce the employee's wages below the minimum wage or overtime compensation in any single workweek.
Items for the employer's benefit or convenience. The FLSA's deduction restrictions apply with particular force to items considered primarily for the benefit or convenience of the employer. U.S. Department of Labor guidance identifies the following as employer-benefit items: tools used in the employee's work, damages to the employer's property by the employee or third parties, financial losses due to clients or customers not paying bills, and theft of the employer's property by the employee or other individuals. Employees may not be required to pay for any of the cost of such items if doing so would reduce their wages below the required minimum wage or overtime compensation, even if the economic loss was due to the employee's negligence. Employers may not circumvent this rule by requiring the employee to reimburse the employer in cash rather than through paycheck deduction.
No written-consent requirement under Mississippi law. Because Mississippi has not enacted a statute requiring employee written authorization for wage deductions (as many states have), Mississippi employers are not subject to a state-law consent rule. Whether a deduction is permissible turns solely on the federal FLSA minimum-wage floor and any contractual agreement between the employer and employee. Employers who include a deduction-authorization clause in an employee handbook or payroll agreement should ensure that the agreement does not purport to authorize deductions that would violate the FLSA.
Relationship to Mississippi's narrow wage-payment statute. Mississippi Code § 71-1-35 imposes payment-frequency and lag-time requirements on two narrow categories of employers: certain manufacturing employers with 50 or more employees employing public labor, and public service corporations. That statute does not address deductions. The only wage-related provision in the Mississippi Code that touches on deductions is an unemployment-tax reporting rule stating that "no part of the [unemployment] tax... is to be deducted from the worker's [wages]" (Mississippi Department of Employment Security Form UI-3B, certification language). No Mississippi statute governs wage deductions for ordinary payroll items such as uniforms, tools, or shortages.
Source: U.S. Department of Labor, Minimum Wages for Tipped Employees (Sept. 1, 2014) (footnote 9: "The following states do not have State minimum wage laws: Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, and Tennessee.")