Arizona wage and hour law sits in two places at once. The state has its own minimum wage, its own paydays and final-pay deadlines, and its own damages rules for unpaid wages. Its own hours-of-work provisions are written for employment by or on behalf of the state or a political subdivision. The overtime section below sets out the federal rule that covers work outside that.
This note walks through the topics employers and employees ask about most. Every legal point below is tied to a specific statute, rule, or agency notice. Where the research for this note did not verify a source on a point, the note says so plainly instead of filling the gap.
What is the minimum wage?
Arizona's minimum wage is $15.15 an hour, a rate that took effect on January 1, 2026 . That number comes from the Industrial Commission of Arizona, which announces the adjusted rate; the statute itself supplies the adjustment mechanism rather than the current figure .
The wage floor applies to all hours worked no matter how pay is structured, so an hourly worker, a salaried worker, a commissioned worker, and a piece-rate worker are all measured against the same floor . The Payment of Wages article defines minimum wage as the nondiscretionary minimum compensation due an employee by reason of employment, including the employee's commissions but excluding tips or gratuities .
Not every worker is covered. The Act does not reach a person employed by a parent or a sibling, a person doing casual in-home babysitting, a person employed by the State of Arizona or the federal government, or a person employed by a small business grossing under $500,000 a year that is exempt from the federal minimum wage . A person employed by the State of Arizona is therefore outside this rate .
The measuring period is the workweek, and an employer has to tell a worker at hire which workweek applies to them . If combined wages for a workweek come in under the floor, the employer owes the compensation already earned plus the shortfall .
Federal law runs on a separate schedule: the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) directs a covered employer to pay wages at the rates that schedule sets, and the last step in it is $7.25 an hour . The Arizona figure is the larger of the two, so an Arizona employer paying the state rate is paying above the federal step.
The annual adjustment is automatic in the sense that the statute directs it every year rather than leaving it to a new legislative vote.
Local government may go higher. The minimum wage article expressly authorizes local regulation.
An employer with workers in more than one Arizona city should check for a local ordinance where the work is actually performed, because the statewide figure is a floor and not a ceiling. This note does not identify any specific local ordinance.
Sources for this answer
Official source · Agency guidance
A.1 Industrial Commission of Arizona, 2026 Minimum Wage IncreasePDFThe Industrial Commission of Arizona announced that Arizona's minimum wage rose to $15.15 per hour effective January 1, 2026.
In accordance with A.R.S. § 23-363(B), Arizona's minimum wage will increase from $14.70 to $15.15, effective January 1, 2026.
See Industrial Commission of Arizona, 2026 Minimum Wage Increase (Sept. 29, 2025)
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A.2 A.R.S. § 23-363(B)The minimum wage is increased each January 1 by the increase in the cost of living.
The minimum wage shall be increased on January 1, 2021 and on January 1 of successive years, by the increase in the cost of living.
See A.R.S. § 23-363(B)
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A.3 A.A.C. R20-5-1206(A)PDFAn employer must pay no less than the minimum wage for all hours worked regardless of pay frequency or pay basis.
Subject to the requirements of the Act and this Article, no less than the minimum wage shall be paid for all hours worked, regardless of the frequency of payment and regardless of whether the wage is paid on an hourly, salaried, commissioned, piece rate, or any other basis.
See A.A.C. R20-5-1206(A)
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A.4 A.R.S. § 23-350(5)Minimum wage means the nondiscretionary minimum compensation due an employee by reason of employment, including the employee's commissions but excluding tips or gratuities.
“Minimum wage” means the nondiscretionary minimum compensation due an employee by reason of employment, including the employee's commissions, but excluding tips or gratuities.
See A.R.S. § 23-350(5)
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A.6 A.A.C. R20-5-1206(C)PDFThe workweek is the basis for determining an employee's hourly wage, and the employer must advise the employee of the designated workweek upon hire.
The workweek is the basis for determining an employee’s hourly wage. Upon hire, an employer shall advise the employee of the employee’s designated workweek.
See A.A.C. R20-5-1206(C)
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A.7 A.A.C. R20-5-1206(B)PDFIf combined wages for a workweek fall below the applicable minimum wage, the employer must pay the compensation already earned plus the difference up to the minimum wage.
If the combined wages of an employee are less than the applicable minimum wage for a work week, the employer shall pay monetary compensation already earned, and no less than the difference between the amounts earned and the minimum wage as required under the Act.
See A.A.C. R20-5-1206(B)
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A.8 29 U.S.C. § 206(a)The federal Fair Labor Standards Act directs every covered employer to pay its employees wages at the rates set out in section 206(a), the schedule that ends at $7.25 an hour.
Every employer shall pay to each of his employees who in any workweek is engaged in commerce or in the production of goods for commerce, or is employed in an enterprise engaged in commerce or in the production of goods for commerce, wages at the following rates: (1) except as otherwise provided in this section, not less than- (A) $5.85 an hour, beginning on the 60th day after May 25, 2007; (B) $6.55 an hour, beginning 12 months after that 60th day; and (C) $7.25 an hour, beginning 24 months after that 60th day;
See 29 U.S.C. § 206(a)(1)(C)
Official source · Agency guidance
A.5 Industrial Commission of Arizona, 2026 Minimum Wage PosterPDFThe Industrial Commission of Arizona states that the Fair Wages and Healthy Families Act does not apply to a person employed by a parent or sibling, a casual in-home babysitter, a person employed by the State of Arizona or the United States government, or a person employed by a small business grossing under $500,000 a year that is exempt from the federal minimum wage.
The Fair Wages and Healthy Families Act (the “Act”) does not apply to any person who is employed by a parent or a sibling; any person who is employed performing babysitting services in the employer’s home on a casual basis; any person employed by the State of Arizona or the United States government; or any person employed in a small business that grosses less than $500,000 in annual revenue, if that small business is exempt from having to pay a minimum wage under section 206(a) of title 29 of the United States Code.
See Industrial Commission of Arizona, 2026 Minimum Wage Poster (The Fair Wages and Healthy Families Act)
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A.9 A.R.S. § 23-364(I)A county, city, or town may regulate minimum wages and benefits by ordinance within its boundaries but may not set a minimum wage lower than the one this article prescribes.
A county, city, or town may by ordinance regulate minimum wages and benefits within its geographic boundaries but may not provide for a minimum wage lower than that prescribed in this article.
See A.R.S. § 23-364(I)
When is overtime owed?
No. Arizona's own hours-of-work provisions are addressed to public employment and to law enforcement work, not to private employers generally. The state constitution's eight-hour day is written for employment by or on behalf of the state or a political subdivision . The state overtime compensation statute likewise reaches an employee of this state or a political subdivision whose position has been designated as eligible , and a separate statute addresses people engaged in law enforcement activities working past forty hours in a week .
For a private employer the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) supplies the rule, requiring at least one and one-half times the regular rate for hours over forty in a workweek for covered employees . The FLSA carries the same forty-hour rule into domestic service work in one or more households .
Because the trigger is the workweek and not the day, an Arizona employer needs a fixed workweek to measure against. A workweek is a fixed and regularly recurring period of seven consecutive workdays , and a workday is any fixed period of 24 consecutive hours .
The public-employment framing is on the face of the constitutional provision.
Under the federal rule, overtime is measured across the whole workweek rather than against the length of any single shift .
Sources for this answer
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B.1 Ariz. Const. art. XVIII, § 1The Arizona Constitution sets an eight-hour lawful day's work for employment by or on behalf of the state or a political subdivision.
Eight hours and no more, shall constitute a lawful day's work in all employment by, or on behalf of, the state or any political subdivision of the State.
See Ariz. Const. art. XVIII, § 1
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B.2 A.R.S. § 23-391(A)Arizona's overtime compensation statute applies to an employee of the state or a political subdivision whose position has been determined eligible for overtime compensation and who works beyond the normal workweek.
Subject to availability of appropriated monies, an employee of this state or any political subdivision who serves in a position determined by the law enforcement merit system council, the director of the department of administration, the Arizona board of regents, the board of directors for the Arizona state schools for the deaf and the blind or the governing body of a political subdivision, in the discretion of the board or body, to be eligible for overtime compensation and who is required to work in excess of the person's normal workweek shall be compensated for the excess time at the following rates:
See A.R.S. § 23-391(A)
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B.3 A.R.S. § 23-392(A)A person engaged in law enforcement activities must be compensated for each hour worked beyond forty hours in one work week unless the employer and that person agree otherwise.
Subject to subsection B of this section, any person engaged in law enforcement activities shall be compensated for each hour worked in excess of forty hours in one work week, unless otherwise agreed to by the employer and the person engaged in law enforcement activities, at the option of the employer at the following rates: 1. One and one-half times the regular rate at which the person is employed or one and one-half hours of compensatory time off for each hour worked if by the person's job classification overtime compensation is mandated by federal law.
See A.R.S. § 23-392(A)
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B.4 29 U.S.C. § 207(a)(1)Federal law requires covered employees to receive at least one and one-half times the regular rate for hours worked beyond forty in a workweek.
Except as otherwise provided in this section, no employer shall employ any of his employees who in any workweek is engaged in commerce or in the production of goods for commerce, or is employed in an enterprise engaged in commerce or in the production of goods for commerce, for a workweek longer than forty hours unless such employee receives compensation for his employment in excess of the hours above specified at a rate not less than one and one-half times the regular rate at which he is employed.
See 29 U.S.C. § 207(a)(1)
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B.5 29 U.S.C. § 207(l)Federal law applies the forty-hour overtime requirement to employees in domestic service in one or more households.
No employer shall employ any employee in domestic service in one or more households for a workweek longer than forty hours unless such employee receives compensation for such employment in accordance with subsection (a).
See 29 U.S.C. § 207(l)
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B.6 A.A.C. R20-5-1202PDFA workweek is any fixed and regularly recurring period of seven consecutive workdays.
“Workweek” means any fixed and regularly recurring period of seven consecutive workdays.
See A.A.C. R20-5-1202
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B.7 A.A.C. R20-5-1202PDFA workday is any fixed period of 24 consecutive hours.
“Workday” means any fixed period of 24 consecutive hours.
See A.A.C. R20-5-1202
Are breaks required?
No. The sections cited in this note impose no Arizona meal-break or rest-break mandate for adult employees. Federal law does require one specific break: an employer must give a nursing employee reasonable break time to express breast milk for a year after the birth, and a private space that is not a bathroom . That break is unpaid unless the employee is not completely relieved from duty, in which case it counts as hours worked . An employer with fewer than 50 employees is excused from those lactation-break requirements where they would impose an undue hardship .
What the verified sources do settle is how break time is treated once it happens. Hours worked includes all time an employee is employed , and the wage rule reaches all hours for which the employee is employed and required to give to the employer, including all time on duty or at a prescribed work place and all time the employee is suffered or permitted to work . On duty means time spent working or waiting that the employer controls and that the worker cannot use for their own purpose . Time that meets those descriptions must be paid at no less than the minimum wage .
Arizona defines on duty by employer control .
A worker who is kept at a work station, told to stay reachable, or interrupted to handle a task during a meal period may still be on duty for that period .
Sources for this answer
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C.1 29 U.S.C. § 218dFederal law requires an employer to provide reasonable break time for an employee to express breast milk for one year after the child's birth, and a place other than a bathroom that is shielded from view and free from intrusion.
An employer shall provide- (1) a reasonable break time for an employee to express breast milk for such employee's nursing child for 1 year after the child's birth each time such employee has need to express the milk; and (2) a place, other than a bathroom, that is shielded from view and free from intrusion from coworkers and the public, which may be used by an employee to express breast milk.
See 29 U.S.C. § 218d(a).
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C.2 29 U.S.C. § 218dA lactation break counts as hours worked if the employee is not completely relieved from duty for the entirety of the break.
Break time provided under subsection (a)(1) shall be considered hours worked if the employee is not completely relieved from duty during the entirety of such break.
See 29 U.S.C. § 218d(b)(2).
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C.3 29 U.S.C. § 218dAn employer with fewer than 50 employees is not subject to the lactation-break requirements where they would impose an undue hardship.
An employer that employs less than 50 employees shall not be subject to the requirements of this section, if such requirements would impose an undue hardship by causing the employer significant difficulty or expense when considered in relation to the size, financial resources, nature, or structure of the employer's business.
See 29 U.S.C. § 218d(c).
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C.4 A.R.S. § 23-350(4)Hours worked includes all time an employee is employed.
“Hours worked” includes all time an employee is employed.
See A.R.S. § 23-350(4)
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C.5 A.A.C. R20-5-1202PDFHours worked means all hours a covered employee is employed and required to give to the employer, including all on-duty time, time at a prescribed work place, and time the employee is suffered or permitted to work.
“Hours worked” means all hours for which an employee covered under the Act is employed and required to give to the employer, including all time during which an employee is on duty or at a prescribed work place and all time the employee is suffered or permitted to work.
See A.A.C. R20-5-1202
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C.6 A.A.C. R20-5-1202PDFOn duty means time spent working or waiting that the employer controls and that the employee is not permitted to use for the employee's own purpose.
“On duty” means time spent working or waiting that the employer controls and that the employee is not permitted to use for the employee’s own purpose.
See A.A.C. R20-5-1202
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C.7 A.A.C. R20-5-1206(A)PDFNo less than the minimum wage must be paid for all hours worked, whatever the pay basis or pay frequency.
Subject to the requirements of the Act and this Article, no less than the minimum wage shall be paid for all hours worked, regardless of the frequency of payment and regardless of whether the wage is paid on an hourly, salaried, commissioned, piece rate, or any other basis.
See A.A.C. R20-5-1206(A)
When is final pay due?
The deadline depends on who ended the job.
A discharged employee must be paid wages due within seven working days or by the end of the next regular pay period, whichever comes sooner . An employee who quits must be paid all wages due in the usual manner no later than the regular payday for the pay period during which the termination occurred .
Wages here means nondiscretionary compensation due in return for labor or services that the worker reasonably expects to be paid, whether calculated by time, task, piece, commission, or another method . So commissions and piece-rate earnings that have come due are part of the final payment, not an optional extra.
Final pay must be made in lawful money of the United States by a negotiable instrument that can be immediately redeemed in cash, or by deposit in a financial institution of the employee's choice, and the instrument cannot be postdated . An employer cannot solve a dispute by holding part of the check back: no portion of wages may be withheld or diverted unless one of the statutory grounds applies .
The discharge deadline runs to whichever of the two dates comes sooner.
Diary the earlier of the two dates the day a discharge happens . If the next regular payday is three weeks out, seven working days controls; if the discharge lands just before a payday, that payday controls.
Sources for this answer
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D.1 A.R.S. § 23-353(A)A discharged employee must be paid wages due within seven working days or by the end of the next regular pay period, whichever is sooner.
When an employee is discharged from the service of an employer, he shall be paid wages due him within seven working days or the end of the next regular pay period, whichever is sooner.
See A.R.S. § 23-353(A)
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D.2 A.R.S. § 23-353(B)An employee who quits must be paid all wages due no later than the regular payday for the pay period during which the termination occurred.
When an employee quits the service of an employer he shall be paid in the usual manner all wages due him no later than the regular payday for the pay period during which the termination occurred.
See A.R.S. § 23-353(B)
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D.3 A.R.S. § 23-350(7)Wages means nondiscretionary compensation due for labor or services that the employee has a reasonable expectation to be paid, however calculated.
“Wages” means nondiscretionary compensation due an employee in return for labor or services rendered by an employee for which the employee has a reasonable expectation to be paid whether determined by a time, task, piece, commission or other method of calculation.
See A.R.S. § 23-350(7)
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D.4 A.R.S. § 23-353(C)Wages due under this section must be paid in lawful money of the United States by an immediately redeemable negotiable instrument or by deposit in a financial institution of the employee's choice, dated no later than the day it is given.
Every employer, including this state and its political subdivisions, shall pay wages or compensation due an employee under this section in lawful money of the United States by negotiable check, draft, money order or warrant, in the case of the state or any political subdivision, which can be immediately redeemed in cash at a bank or other financial institution, payable on demand or by deposit in a financial institution of employee's choice and dated not later than the day upon which the check, draft, money order or warrant is given, and not otherwise.
See A.R.S. § 23-353(C)
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D.5 A.R.S. § 23-352An employer may not withhold or divert any portion of an employee's wages unless one of the grounds listed in the statute applies.
No employer may withhold or divert any portion of an employee's wages unless one of the following applies: 1. The employer is required or empowered to do so by state or federal law.
See A.R.S. § 23-352
What is the penalty for paying late?
Arizona's answer to unpaid wages is a damages multiplier .
If an employer violates the wage chapter by failing to pay wages due, the employee may recover in a civil action an amount that is treble the unpaid wages . Failing to meet a final-pay deadline is the common route into that provision.
A second multiplier sits behind an order: an employer that has been ordered by the department or a court to pay wages due, and does not pay within ten days after the order becomes final, is liable for treble the unpaid wages, subject to interest at the legal rate .
Unpaid minimum wage has its own remedy. An employer that fails to pay wages or earned paid sick time required under the minimum wage article owes the balance plus interest plus an additional amount equal to twice the underpayment . A prevailing plaintiff is also entitled to reasonable attorney fees and costs of suit .
The post-order multiplier is what turns an ignored order into a much larger liability.
Ten days after an order becomes final is the escalation point . An employer contesting an order should still calendar that date, because letting it pass converts the amount owed into a trebled amount plus interest.
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E.1 A.R.S. § 23-355(A)An employee may recover treble the unpaid wages in a civil action where an employer, in violation of the chapter, fails to pay wages due.
Except as provided in subsection B of this section, if an employer, in violation of this chapter, fails to pay wages due any employee, the employee may recover in a civil action against an employer or former employer an amount that is treble the amount of the unpaid wages.
See A.R.S. § 23-355(A)
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E.2 A.R.S. § 23-360An employer ordered by the department or a court to pay wages due that fails to pay within ten days after the order becomes final is liable for treble the unpaid wages plus interest at the legal rate.
An employer who has been ordered by the department pursuant to section 23-357 or a court to pay wages due an employee and who fails to do so within ten days after the order becomes final is liable to pay the employee an amount which is equal to treble the amount of the unpaid wages and which shall be subject to interest at the legal rate.
See A.R.S. § 23-360
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E.3 A.R.S. § 23-364(G)An employer that fails to pay wages or earned paid sick time required under the minimum wage article owes the balance owed with interest plus an additional amount equal to twice the underpayment.
Any employer who fails to pay the wages or earned paid sick time required under this article shall be required to pay the employee the balance of the wages or earned paid sick time owed, including interest thereon, and an additional amount equal to twice the underpaid wages or earned paid sick time.
See A.R.S. § 23-364(G)
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E.4 A.R.S. § 23-364(G)A prevailing plaintiff is entitled to reasonable attorney fees and costs of suit.
A prevailing plaintiff shall be entitled to reasonable attorney's fees and costs of suit.
See A.R.S. § 23-364(G)
How often must workers be paid?
Every Arizona employer must designate two or more fixed paydays each month, no more than sixteen days apart . On each regular payday the employer must pay all wages due up to that date, subject to the exceptions the statute lists . Overtime or exception pay gets a longer tail: it is due no later than sixteen days after the end of the most recent pay period .
An employer whose principal place of business is outside Arizona and whose payroll system is centralized outside the state may designate one or more days each month as fixed paydays for the categories of employees the statute identifies .
Arizona's pay-statement duty is tied to how the wages are delivered: when wages are paid by deposit in a financial institution, the employee must be furnished a written or electronic statement of earnings and withholdings . The same statement is required when wages go to a payroll card account .
Behind the statement sits a recordkeeping duty, imposed by the minimum wage article rather than by the payday statute, so its coverage follows that article. Employers must maintain payroll records showing hours worked for each day worked and the wages and earned paid sick time paid to all employees, for four years . Employees and their designated representatives are entitled to inspect and copy payroll records pertaining to them .
Recordkeeping is not a paperwork formality here, because the records carry an evidentiary consequence.
An employer who cannot produce four years of daily hours records starts a wage dispute on the wrong side of that presumption.
Sources for this answer
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F.1 A.R.S. § 23-351(A)Each employer must designate two or more fixed paydays in each month, not more than sixteen days apart.
Each employer in this state shall designate two or more days in each month, not more than sixteen days apart, as fixed paydays for payment of wages to the employees.
See A.R.S. § 23-351(A)
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F.2 A.R.S. § 23-351(C)On each regular payday an employer must pay employees all wages due up to that date, subject to the listed exceptions.
Each employer, on each of the regular paydays, shall pay to the employees all wages due the employees up to that date, except: 1. In the case of employees remaining in the service of any such employer, with the exception of school district employees or persons employed by an employee leasing firm that contracts with a school district, all wages other than overtime or exception pay not to exceed five days of labor may be withheld.
See A.R.S. § 23-351(C)
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F.3 A.R.S. § 23-351(C)(3)Overtime or exception pay must be paid no later than sixteen days after the end of the most recent pay period.
Overtime or exception pay shall be paid not later than sixteen days after the end of the most recent pay period.
See A.R.S. § 23-351(C)(3)
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F.4 A.R.S. § 23-351(B)An employer whose principal place of business and centralized payroll system are outside Arizona may designate one or more fixed paydays each month for the employees the statute identifies.
Notwithstanding subsection A of this section, each employer in this state whose principal place of business is located outside of this state and whose payroll system is centralized outside of this state may designate one or more days in each month as fixed paydays for payment of wages to the following employees: 1. Professional, administrative or executive employees or employees employed in the capacity of an outside salesman as those terms are defined under the fair labor standards act of 1938, as amended.
See A.R.S. § 23-351(B)
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F.5 A.R.S. § 23-351(E)An employee paid by deposit in a financial institution must be furnished a written or electronic statement of earnings and withholdings.
When an employee's wages are paid by deposit in a financial institution the employee shall be furnished with a written or electronic statement of the employee's earnings and withholdings.
See A.R.S. § 23-351(E)
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F.6 A.R.S. § 23-351(F)An employee paid to a payroll card account must be furnished a written or electronic statement of earnings and withholdings.
When an employee's wages are paid to a payroll card account the employee shall be furnished with a written or electronic statement of the employee's earnings and withholdings.
See A.R.S. § 23-351(F)
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F.7 A.R.S. § 23-364(D)Employers must maintain payroll records showing hours worked each day and the wages and earned paid sick time paid to all employees for four years.
Employers shall maintain payroll records showing the hours worked for each day worked, and the wages and earned paid sick time paid to all employees for a period of four years.
See A.R.S. § 23-364(D)
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F.8 A.R.S. § 23-364(D)Employers must permit an employee or the employee's designated representative to inspect and copy payroll records pertaining to that employee.
Employers shall permit an employee or his or her designated representative to inspect and copy payroll records pertaining to that employee.
See A.R.S. § 23-364(D)
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F.9 A.R.S. § 23-364(D)An employer's failure to maintain the required payroll records raises a rebuttable presumption that the employer did not pay the required minimum wage rate or earned paid sick time.
Failure to do so shall raise a rebuttable presumption that the employer did not pay the required minimum wage rate or earned paid sick time.
See A.R.S. § 23-364(D)
Employee or independent contractor?
Arizona applies an economic realities test for minimum wage purposes. Whether an employment relationship exists, including whether someone is an independent contractor, is decided on the economic realities of the relationship . The question is whether the individual is economically dependent on the employer, judged by a non-exclusive list of factors that includes the factors identified in the two independent contractor statutes .
The separate payment-of-wages article carries its own definition: an employee is any person who performs services for an employer under a contract of employment made in Arizona or to be performed wholly or partly within Arizona . Someone who works for another person with no express or implied compensation agreement is not an employee under the Act .
Two other statutes supply factors and a declaration mechanism rather than a separate test of their own. The independent contractor concept turns on independence in executing the work. A person engaged in work for a business who is independent in executing it, not subject to the rule or control of the business, engaged only in a definite job or piece of work, and subordinate only in achieving the business's intended result, is an independent contractor .
Two statutes give parties a documentary route. A business and an independent contractor may prove the relationship by executing a written agreement that complies with the statute . An employing unit may prove the relationship by having the contractor execute a declaration of independent business status and by acting in a manner substantially consistent with that declaration .
There is also a narrow carve-out for casual babysitting. Someone who babysits for another individual on a casual basis, and whose vocation is not babysitting, is not an employee under the Act, even if they do other household work, as long as that household work stays within twenty percent of the total hours on the assignment . Casual basis means employment that is irregular or intermittent .
The declaration route is worth reading closely, because the statute conditions it on conduct as well as paperwork.
Signing a declaration and then supervising the worker like an employee undercuts the very showing the declaration is meant to support, because the statute conditions the presumption on the employing unit acting in a manner substantially consistent with the declaration . Where day-to-day practice drifts from the document, revisit the classification rather than the paperwork.
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G.1 A.A.C. R20-5-1205(A)PDFWhether an employment relationship exists under the Act, including whether an individual is an independent contractor, is determined by the economic realities of the relationship.
Determination of an employment relationship under the Act, which includes whether an individual is an independent contractor, shall be based upon the economic realities of the relationship.
See A.A.C. R20-5-1205(A)
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G.2 A.A.C. R20-5-1205(A)PDFEconomic dependence is determined by non-exclusive factors showing dependence, including the factors identified in A.R.S. §§ 23-902(D) and 23-1601(B).
Consideration of whether an individual is economically dependent on the employer for which the individual performs work shall be determined by factors showing dependence, which non-exclusive factors shall include those factors identified in A.R.S. §§ 23-902(D) and 23-1601(B).
See A.A.C. R20-5-1205(A)
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G.3 A.R.S. § 23-350(2)An employee is any person who performs services for an employer under a contract of employment made in Arizona or to be performed wholly or partly within Arizona.
“Employee” means any person who performs services for an employer under a contract of employment either made in this state or to be performed wholly or partly within this state.
See A.R.S. § 23-350(2)
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G.4 A.A.C. R20-5-1205(B)PDFAn individual who works for another person without any express or implied compensation agreement is not an employee under the Act.
An individual who works for another person without any express or implied compensation agreement is not an employee under the Act.
See A.A.C. R20-5-1205(B)
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G.5 A.R.S. § 23-902(C)A person independent in executing the work, not subject to the business's rule or control, engaged only in a definite job or piece of work, and subordinate only in effecting the business's intended result, is an independent contractor.
A person engaged in work for a business, and who while so engaged is independent of that business in the execution of the work and not subject to the rule or control of the business for which the work is done, but is engaged only in the performance of a definite job or piece of work, and is subordinate to that business only in effecting a result in accordance with that business design, is an independent contractor.
See A.R.S. § 23-902(C)
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G.6 A.R.S. § 23-902(D)A business and an independent contractor may prove an independent contractor relationship by executing a written agreement that complies with the subsection.
A business that uses the services of an independent contractor and the independent contractor may prove the existence of an independent contractor relationship by executing a written agreement that complies with this subsection.
See A.R.S. § 23-902(D)
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G.7 A.R.S. § 23-1601(B)An employing unit may prove an independent contractor relationship by the contractor executing a declaration of independent business status and by the employing unit acting substantially consistently with that declaration.
Any employing unit contracting with an independent contractor may prove the existence of an independent contractor relationship for the purposes of this title by the independent contractor executing a declaration of independent business status, as provided by this section, and by the employing unit acting in a manner substantially consistent with the declaration.
See A.R.S. § 23-1601(B)
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G.8 A.A.C. R20-5-1205(C)PDFA casual-basis babysitter whose vocation is not babysitting is not an employee under the Act, provided related household work does not exceed 20% of total hours on the assignment.
An individual who works for another individual as a babysitter on a casual basis and whose vocation is not babysitting, is not an employee under the Act even if the individual performs other household work not related to caring for the children, provided the household work does not exceed 20% of the total hours worked on the particular babysitting assignment.
See A.A.C. R20-5-1205(C)
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G.9 A.A.C. R20-5-1202PDFCasual basis, applied to babysitting services, means employment that is irregular or intermittent.
“Casual Basis,” when applied to babysitting services, means employment which is irregular or intermittent.
See A.A.C. R20-5-1202
Is a tip credit allowed?
Yes, a partial one. For an employee who customarily and regularly receives tips or gratuities, the employer may pay up to $3.00 per hour less than the minimum wage, but only if the employer can establish, by its records of charged tips or by the employee's declaration for Federal Insurance Contributions Act (FICA) purposes, that tips plus wages brought the employee to at least the minimum wage for all hours worked that week .
A tip is a sum a customer presents as a gift in recognition of service, and it includes gratuities . In computing the minimum wage the employer counts only monetary compensation, and counts tips and commissions in the workweek in which they are earned .
Several conditions shape what actually counts toward the credit. The employee must actually receive the tip free of employer control over how it is used, so that the tip becomes the employee's property . Tipped employees may pool, share, or split tips among themselves, and whatever each one actually retains is treated as that person's tip . But employer-required sharing with people who do not customarily and regularly receive tips, including management or food preparers, is not credited toward the tipped employee's minimum wage . A compulsory service charge is not credited either, unless the employer actually distributes it to the employee in the pay period in which it is earned .
Notice is required, twice over. Before taking a tip credit for someone hired or assigned to a tipped position, the employer must give written notice , and after that must notify the employee in writing each pay period of the per-hour amount taken as a tip credit .
The weekly true-up is the core of the arrangement.
Build the per-pay-period tip-credit notice into the payroll cycle alongside the pay statement , and keep the charged-tip records that the statute makes the employer's means of proof .
Sources for this answer
Primary source · Primary law
H.1 A.R.S. § 23-363(C)For an employee who customarily and regularly receives tips, the employer may pay up to $3.00 per hour less than the minimum wage if it can establish by charged-tip records or the employee's FICA declaration that wages plus tips met the minimum wage for all hours worked each week.
For any employee who customarily and regularly receives tips or gratuities from patrons or others, the employer may pay a wage up to $3.00 per hour less than the minimum wage if the employer can establish by its records of charged tips or by the employee's declaration for federal insurance contributions act (FICA) purposes that for each week, when adding tips received to wages paid, the employee received not less than the minimum wage for all hours worked.
See A.R.S. § 23-363(C)
Primary source · Primary law
H.2 A.A.C. R20-5-1202PDFA tip is a sum a customer presents as a gift in recognition of some service performed, and includes gratuities.
“Tip” means a sum that a customer presents as a gift in recognition of some service performed, and includes gratuities.
See A.A.C. R20-5-1202
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H.3 A.A.C. R20-5-1206(D)PDFIn computing the minimum wage an employer considers only monetary compensation and counts tips and commissions in the workweek in which they are earned.
In computing the minimum wage, an employer shall consider only monetary compensation and shall count tips and commissions in the workweek in which the tip or commission is earned.
See A.A.C. R20-5-1206(D)
Primary source · Primary law
H.4 A.A.C. R20-5-1207(B)PDFA tip counts toward the Arizona tip credit only where tips are customarily and regularly received in the occupation, the employee actually receives the tip free of employer control so that it becomes the employee's property, and any pooling is among employees who customarily and regularly receive tips.
For purposes of calculating the permissible credit for tips under A.R.S. § 23-363(C), the following applies: 1. Tips are customarily and regularly received in the occupation in which the employee is engaged; 2. Except as provided in R20-5-1206(E), the employee actually receives the tip free of employer control as to how the employee uses the tip and the tip becomes the employee’s property; 3. Employees who customarily and regularly receive tips may pool, share, or split tips between them, and the amount each employee actually retains is considered the tip of the employee who retains it;
See A.A.C. R20-5-1207(B)(1)-(3)
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H.5 A.A.C. R20-5-1207(B)PDFTips an employer requires be shared with staff who do not customarily and regularly receive tips, and compulsory service charges the employer does not distribute to the employee in the pay period earned, are not credited toward the employee's minimum wage.
4. Employer-required sharing of tips with employees who do not customarily and regularly receive tips in the occupation in which the employee is engaged, including management or food preparers, are not credited toward that employee’s minimum wage; and 5. A compulsory charge for service imposed on a customer by an employer’s establishment are not credited toward an employee’s minimum wage unless the employer actually distributes the charge to the employee in the pay period in which the charge is earned.
See A.A.C. R20-5-1207(B)(4)-(5)
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H.6 A.A.C. R20-5-1207(C)PDFAn employer intending to take a tip credit must give the employee written notice before exercising it, upon hiring or assigning the employee to a tipped position.
Upon hiring or assigning an individual to a position that customarily and regularly receives tips, an employer intending to exercise a tip credit shall provide written notice to the employee prior to exercising the tip credit.
See A.A.C. R20-5-1207(C)
Primary source · Primary law
H.7 A.A.C. R20-5-1207(C)PDFAn employer must notify the employee in writing each pay period of the per-hour amount taken as a tip credit.
Thereafter, the employer shall notify the employee in writing each pay period of the amount per hour that the employer takes as a tip credit.
See A.A.C. R20-5-1207(C)
How is it enforced?
Arizona runs enforcement on parallel tracks: a private lawsuit, an administrative complaint to the Industrial Commission of Arizona (ICA), and a wage claim filed with the department. Several provisions quoted below also reach earned paid sick time, which Arizona regulates in a separate article that this note does not cover.
The cause of action. A civil action to enforce the minimum wage article may be brought in a court of competent jurisdiction by a law enforcement officer or by any private party injured by a violation .
The administrative route. Any person or organization may file an administrative complaint with the commission charging that an employer violated the article as to any employee or other person .
The department wage claim, and its prerequisites. Instead of proceeding in court under the treble damages statute, an employee may file a written claim with the department for unpaid wages, but only if the amount does not exceed $12,000 and only if the claim is filed within one year of accrual . Once the department makes a final determination, the department on the employee's behalf, or the employee directly, may obtain judgment and execution, garnishment, attachment, or other available collection remedies .
The remedies. Unpaid minimum wage or earned paid sick time carries the balance owed with interest plus an additional amount equal to twice the underpayment , and a prevailing plaintiff is entitled to reasonable attorney fees and costs . Recordkeeping, posting, and other requirements the commission establishes carry a civil penalty of at least $250 for a first violation and at least $1,000 for each subsequent or willful violation, with possible special monitoring and inspections . Willfully means acting with actual knowledge of the requirements, or with reckless disregard of them .
The limitations period, which differs by route. For a civil action to enforce the minimum wage article, the deadline is two years after a violation last occurs, or three years for a willful violation, and it may reach all violations that were part of a continuing course of employer conduct regardless of their date . That deadline is written for a civil action to enforce that article . A treble damages action under section 23-355 runs on a different clock: Arizona gives one year to sue on a liability created by statute, other than a penalty or forfeiture , and the Court of Appeals has held that the treble damages available under section 23-355 are not a penalty, so that one-year limit applies to an unpaid-wages claim . The department wage claim has its own, shorter deadline of one year from accrual . The clock is tolled during a commission or law enforcement investigation, and an investigation does not bar a private civil action .
Retaliation is treated as its own violation with its own remedy. No employer or other person may discriminate or subject anyone to retaliation for asserting a claim or right under the article, for helping someone else do so, or for informing anyone about their rights . Retaliation also includes interference with, or punishment for, participating in or assisting an investigation, proceeding, or hearing under the article . The remedy is set by the commission or a court at an amount sufficient to compensate and deter, with a daily floor.
Two structural rules frame all of this. Rights under the article cannot be signed away , and employers must post notices in the workplace, in the format the commission specifies, telling employees about their rights .
There is one defense worth knowing. An employer is not liable for failing to pay the minimum wage if it proves the act or omission was in good faith and conformed with and relied on a commission regulation, order, ruling, approval, interpretation, administrative practice, or enforcement policy issued under the commission's authority .
“No verbal or written agreement or employment contract may waive any rights under this article.”
Sources for this answer
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I.1 A.R.S. § 23-364(E)A civil action to enforce the article may be maintained in a court of competent jurisdiction by a law enforcement officer or by any private party injured by a violation.
A civil action to enforce this article may be maintained in a court of competent jurisdiction by a law enforcement officer or by any private party injured by a violation of this article.
See A.R.S. § 23-364(E)
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I.2 A.R.S. § 23-364(C)Any person or organization may file an administrative complaint with the commission charging that an employer violated the article as to any employee or other person.
Any person or organization may file an administrative complaint with the commission charging that an employer has violated this article as to any employee or other person.
See A.R.S. § 23-364(C)
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I.3 A.R.S. § 23-356(A)Instead of proceeding under section 23-355, an employee may file a written unpaid wage claim with the department if the wages do not exceed $12,000 and the claim is filed within one year of accrual.
Instead of proceeding under section 23-355, an employee may file a written claim with the department for unpaid wages against an employer if the amount of such wages does not exceed $12,000 and if such claim is filed within one year of the accrual of such claim.
See A.R.S. § 23-356(A)
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I.4 A.R.S. § 23-356(B)The department on the employee's behalf, or the employee, may obtain judgment and execution, garnishment, attachment, or other available remedies to collect unpaid wages established by the department's final determination.
The department may, on behalf of an employee, or the employee may obtain judgment and execution, garnishment, attachment or other available remedies for collection of unpaid wages established by final determination by the department.
See A.R.S. § 23-356(B)
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I.5 A.R.S. § 23-364(G)An employer that fails to pay wages or earned paid sick time required under the article owes the balance with interest plus an additional amount equal to twice the underpayment.
Any employer who fails to pay the wages or earned paid sick time required under this article shall be required to pay the employee the balance of the wages or earned paid sick time owed, including interest thereon, and an additional amount equal to twice the underpaid wages or earned paid sick time.
See A.R.S. § 23-364(G)
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I.6 A.R.S. § 23-364(G)A prevailing plaintiff is entitled to reasonable attorney fees and costs of suit.
A prevailing plaintiff shall be entitled to reasonable attorney's fees and costs of suit.
See A.R.S. § 23-364(G)
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I.7 A.R.S. § 23-364(F)An employer that violates recordkeeping, posting, or other commission requirements is subject to a civil penalty of at least $250 for a first violation and at least $1,000 for each subsequent or willful violation, and may be subject to special monitoring and inspections.
Any employer who violates recordkeeping, posting, or other requirements that the commission may establish under this article shall be subject to a civil penalty of at least $250 dollars for a first violation, and at least $1000 dollars for each subsequent or willful violation and may, if the commission or court determines appropriate, be subject to special monitoring and inspections.
See A.R.S. § 23-364(F)
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I.8 A.A.C. R20-5-1202PDFWillfully means acting with actual knowledge of the requirements of the Act or the Article, or acting with reckless disregard of them.
“Willfully” means acting with actual knowledge of the requirements of the Act or this Article, or acting with reckless disregard of the requirements of the Act or this Article.
See A.A.C. R20-5-1202
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I.10 A.R.S. § 12-541Arizona requires an action upon a liability created by statute, other than a penalty or forfeiture, to be commenced within one year after the cause of action accrues.
There shall be commenced and prosecuted within one year after the cause of action accrues, and not afterward, the following actions: 1. For malicious prosecution, or for false imprisonment, or for injuries done to the character or reputation of another by libel or slander. 2. For damages for seduction or breach of promise of marriage. 3. For breach of an oral or written employment contract including contract actions based on employee handbooks or policy manuals that do not specify a time period in which to bring an action. 4. For damages for wrongful termination. 5. Upon a liability created by statute, other than a penalty or forfeiture.
See A.R.S. § 12-541(5).
Primary source · Case law
I.11 *Redhair v. Kinerk, Beal, Schmidt, Dyer & Sethi, P.C.*The Arizona Court of Appeals held that treble damages under A.R.S. § 23-355 are not a penalty, so an unpaid-wages claim is not excluded from the one-year limitation in A.R.S. § 12-541(5).
For the above reasons, we conclude that an award of treble damages under § 23-355, when considered in light of all its purposes, is not a penalty so as to qualify the claim for exclusion from the limitation set forth in § 12-541(5).
See *Redhair v. Kinerk, Beal, Schmidt, Dyer & Sethi, P.C.*, 218 Ariz. 293, 183 P.3d 544 (App. 2008).
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I.9 A.R.S. § 23-364(H)A civil action to enforce the article must be commenced no later than two years after a violation last occurs, or three years for a willful violation, and may encompass all violations that were part of a continuing course of employer conduct regardless of date.
A civil action to enforce this article may be commenced no later than two years after a violation last occurs, or three years in the case of a willful violation, and may encompass all violations that occurred as part of a continuing course of employer conduct regardless of their date.
See A.R.S. § 23-364(H)
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I.12 A.R.S. § 23-364(H)The statute of limitations is tolled during a commission or law enforcement investigation of an employer, and such an investigation does not bar a person from bringing a civil action.
The statute of limitations shall be tolled during any investigation of an employer by the commission or other law enforcement officer, but such investigation shall not bar a person from bringing a civil action under this article.
See A.R.S. § 23-364(H)
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I.13 A.R.S. § 23-364(B)No employer or other person may discriminate or subject any person to retaliation for asserting a claim or right under the article, assisting another person in doing so, or informing any person about their rights.
No employer or other person shall discriminate or subject any person to retaliation for asserting any claim or right under this article, for assisting any other person in doing so, or for informing any person about their rights.
See A.R.S. § 23-364(B)
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I.14 A.R.S. § 23-364(A)Retaliation includes interference with or punishment for participating in or assisting an investigation, proceeding, or hearing under the article.
Retaliation shall also include interference with or punishment for in any manner participating in or assisting an investigation, proceeding or hearing under this article.
See A.R.S. § 23-364(A)
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I.18 A.R.S. § 23-364(G)An employer that retaliates in violation of the article must pay an amount set by the commission or a court sufficient to compensate the employee and deter future violations, and not less than $150 for each day the violation continued or until legal judgment is final.
Any employer who retaliates against an employee or other person in violation of this article shall be required to pay the employee an amount set by the commission or a court sufficient to compensate the employee and deter future violations, but not less than one hundred fifty dollars for each day that the violation continued or until legal judgment is final.
See A.R.S. § 23-364(G)
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I.15 A.R.S. § 23-364(H)No verbal or written agreement or employment contract may waive any rights under the article.
No verbal or written agreement or employment contract may waive any rights under this article.
See A.R.S. § 23-364(H)
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I.16 A.R.S. § 23-364(D)Employers must post notices in the workplace, in the format the commission specifies, notifying employees of their rights under the article.
Employers shall post notices in the workplace, in such format specified by the commission, notifying employees of their rights under this article.
See A.R.S. § 23-364(D)
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I.17 A.R.S. § 23-365In an action commenced on or after January 1, 2007, an employer is not liable for failing to pay the minimum wage if it proves the act or omission was in good faith and conformed with and relied on a commission regulation, order, ruling, approval, interpretation, administrative practice, or enforcement policy issued under the commission's authority.
In any action or proceeding commenced on or after January 1, 2007, an employer or other entity is not liable if the employer or entity fails to pay the minimum wage if the employer or entity proves that the act or omission was in good faith, conformed with and relied on an administrative regulation, order, ruling, approval or interpretation, administrative practice or enforcement policy issued by the commission pursuant to and in accordance with the commission's authority under this article.
See A.R.S. § 23-365