Operating a business in Oklahoma comes with some key compliance requirements that employers need to adopt a strong understanding of in order to avoid certain challenges, or worse.
Here is everything employers need to know about labor laws in Oklahoma:
Oklahoma labor laws cover the following key areas:
Oklahoma hiring laws include rules on employee background checks and new hire reporting.
Oklahoma employers are required to report information on newly hired employees, including whether he or she is rehired, to the Oklahoma Employment Security Commission (OESC) using the New Hire Reporting System easily accessible on the web.
Reporting must be completed within 20 calendar days of the date of hire, specifically the date where the employee works to earn wages.
This information is used in child support cases to help locate parents, establish court orders for support, or enforce existing support orders.
Employers will need the following employer and employee information:
Oklahoma does not have a statewide “Ban-the-Box” law for private-sector employers; however, the state does have a “Ban-the-Box” law for state job applications. Specifically, the law removes the questions relating to convictions and criminal history. An exception would be if the candidate is applying to a sensitive government position where criminal history would automatically disqualify him or her.
Under Title 22 of the Oklahoma Statutes, Sections 18 and 19, all employers in Oklahoma cannot request candidates to disclose any sealed/expunged criminal records on an application or during an interview. Candidates can claim that a sealed event never happened and therefore does not count towards his or her criminal record.
Oklahoma Employers, under the Standards for Workplace Drug and Alcohol Testing Act, may conduct drug and alcohol testing; however, such testing may only be requested or required when:
Oklahoma wage and hour laws include topics such as minimum wage, overtime, and final pay.
Employee classifications under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) are classified into three types of workers: non-exempt, exempt, and independent contractors. Exempt employees are not subject to minimum wage or overtime pay laws.
Employers should ensure that employees are properly classified, as the misclassification of a worker may have state and federal monetary consequences.
Oklahoma has not adopted a statewide minimum wage; therefore, the Fair Labor Standards Act, which sets $7.25 per hour as the Federal Minimum Wage, applies. The rate of $7.25 per hour is the lowest hourly wage an employer can legally pay in Oklahoma, with some exceptions.
As per the federal minimum wage standards set by the FLSA, the tipped minimum wage for Oklahoma is $2.13 per hour, meaning Oklahoma employers must pay at least that rate. If an employee does not make the minimum wage amount in each workweek, the employer must pay the difference, adding up to $7.25 per hour.
Employers can claim a tip credit of an employee’s tipped wages, with a maximum amount being $5.12 per hour. The tip credit claimed by the employer cannot exceed the amount of tips actually received from the employee.
Oklahoma has no law or statute that governs overtime pay; therefore, Federal law, specifically FLSA, applies. Under the FLSA, most hourly employees of covered employers are entitled to overtime. The overtime pay rate is 1.5 times the regular hourly wage for any hours worked over 40 in a single workweek, which is defined as any seven consecutive workdays.
In Oklahoma, non-exempt employees must be paid at least twice a calendar month; all wages owed must be paid. State, county, and municipal employers and exempt employees must be paid at least once each calendar month.
Oklahoma employers must schedule regularhttps://www.ok.gov/Labor/faqs.html#q3258 paydays that fall within eleven days of each pay period's end. Employers have an additional three days to issue payment after each regularly scheduled payday.
Under Oklahoma Administrative Code Title 380, Chapter 30, Oklahoma employers may make payroll deductions for statutory reasons such as:
For other deductions, there must be a signed agreement between the employer and employee.
Permitted deductions can include:
Outlined by the Oklahoma Department of Labor (OK DOL), employers must provide employees with a retainable pay statement for each paycheck, either in paper or electronically. These statements must include a clear breakdown of deductions, which can include taxes and insurance deductions.
Employers are required to deliver final paychecks to employees on the next regularly scheduled payday for the last pay period the employee worked before he or she quit or was terminated.
Oklahoma does not require employers to pay out fringe benefits (unused PTO, etc,) upon termination, but employers are required to honor any agreements to do so made during employment or upon hiring.
Neither Oklahoma state laws nor federal laws under the FLSA require meal or rest breaks to be granted to employees. However, Oklahoma employers must still follow guidelines under the FLSA if breaks are offered.
If employers offer short breaks (usually lasting about 5 to 20 minutes), such breaks must be considered as payable work hours. They are to be included in the sum of hours worked during the workweek and must be considered when determining overtime.
FLSA Meal periods (typically lasting at least 30 minutes) serve a different purpose than coffee or snack breaks and, thus, are not work time and are not compensable.
Oklahoma child labor laws are established and governed under the Child Labor Unit (CLU), and cover key areas such as:
Oklahoma employers must ensure compliance with minor employee hour restrictions.
Minor employees aged 14 and 15 years old can only work within the following timeframe:
Additionally, minor employees aged 14 and 15 years old cannot work:
As for required break periods, minor employees aged 14 and 15 years old are entitled to the following:
It’s important to note that the CLU does not have any hour restrictions nor special break requirements for minor employees aged 16 to 17.
For minor employees to work in Oklahoma, he or she must obtain a valid work permit through his or her school, approved by the principal or an administrative officer of the school. For homeschooled individuals, he or she must receive the permit through his or her parents. Employers must have the minor employee’s Employment Certificate of Age and Schooling, or Form 601, that he or she receives from the school.
Note that minor employees aged 16 to 17 are not required to obtain a valid work permit.
Employers are responsible for ensuring that minor employees under the age of 16 do not perform certain dangerous tasks.
While there are many prohibited activities for minor employees, a few examples include:
Aside from compliance with the Federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), Oklahoma only has specific leave laws for the following:
Under the Oklahoma Statutes Title 26, employers must provide employees two hours of time off to vote (or more if distance demands) on Election Day or during early voting periods. Several additional provisions govern voting leave in Oklahoma:
Employees must be paid when he or she presents the employer with proof of voting. Employers cannot reduce compensation or penalize an employee for being absent with the proper proof of voting available.
An employer may dictate when an employee takes voting to leave or adjust employee schedules so that employees have three hours before or after their shift to vote while polls are open.
In Oklahoma, jury duty is a job-protected leave, meaning employees must be able to take time off to attend jury duty without the employer taking adverse action. Employers are also not allowed to request employees to use his or her annual, vacation, or sick leave for time related to jury duty.
Apart from military leave protections under the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA), Oklahoma has a few of its own military leave provisions, including leave protections for public sector employees and its own USERRA law for private sector employees.
Under Oklahoma Statutes Title 72, Section 48, public employees that are members of the US Armed Forces, reserves, state military, or National Guard are entitled to protected leave for active or inactive duty without loss of seniority status or position.
Public employees include municipal, county, or state workers. The employee must receive his or her full pay for the first 30 days of regularly scheduled work of military leave per federal fiscal year (from October 1 to September 30).
For employees taking military leave beyond 30 days within the same fiscal year, the public employer must pay the employee differential pay. Differential pay would be the amount equal to the difference in pay between the employee’s regular civilian pay and the pay he or she receives from the military base.
Private sector employers must abide by the Oklahoma USERRA provisions, which cover employees that are ordered to active or inactive duty under Title 10 (federal order). Employees must receive job-protected leave without loss of seniority or status. Mirroring the federal USERRA, the duration of protected leave is up to 5 years of his or her cumulative service.
Similar to the military leave law for public employees, Oklahoma’s USERRA extends to include the right of employees engaged in state active duty as a National Guard member.
Employers are not required to pay employees for his or her leave, but have the option to provide differential pay.
Employees taking OK USERRA leave may also elect to continue existing employer-sponsored health benefits for themselves or his or her dependents for up to 24 months while engaged in state or federal service.
Workplace safety regulations are established and governed by the Public Employees Occupational Safety and Health (PEOSH), a division of the OK DOL. The PEOSH has the authority to enforce occupational health and safety laws for public sector employees.
Public employers include state agencies, cities, counties, and public schools.
The PEOSH conducts health and safety investigations to address the following:
For private sector employees, employers must follow the rules set forth by the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA).
Outside of the PEOSH and OSHA guidelines, Oklahoma has its own safety provisions under both the Oklahoma Firearms Act and the Oklahoma Self-Defense Act (OSDA). Both laws prohibit employers from banning the storage of firearms or ammunition in locked vehicles on the workplace property.
Under the OSDA, however, employers are not civilly liable for any occurrences that result from storing firearms in a locked vehicle on their property, except for claims under the state Workers' Compensation Act. Except for allowing weapons and ammunition in locked vehicles, no other provision in the OSDA limits or prohibits employers from controlling the possession of weapons on property they own or control.
Employers cannot prohibit a person from bringing firearms or ammunition into parking lots as long as the employee is not a convicted felon and the vehicle is locked. However, employers may prohibit weapons or ammunition from other parts of their property.
Under the Oklahoma Statutes Title 21, Section 21, smoking in certain public areas, including many different workplaces, is generally prohibited.
Smoking is not permitted in what is defined as an “indoor workplace”. Smoking restrictions for indoor workplaces are defined as businesses where any service is performed by:
Areas that qualify a workplace as indoor according to Oklahoma law would include any of the following:
Additionally, any property owned or operated by a county or municipal government of Oklahoma and all educational facilities are smoke-free locations. This includes educational facilities operated by the Oklahoma State System of Higher Education.
Oklahoma law prohibits the use of tobacco/marijuana smoking or marijuana vaping within 25 feet of entrances and exits of any building described above. Note that some businesses, such as stand-alone bars/taverns, are exempt from the provisions.
Oklahoma law generally mirrors the Federal Anti-Discrimination Laws under Title VII; however, the state does have its own provisions that apply to virtually all employers in the state under the Oklahoma Anti-Discrimination Act (OADA).
The OADA allows employers with one or more employees to be covered by the state-governed protections that generally mirror those of Title VII.
Employees that believe he or she had been discriminated against in the workplace can contact the Oklahoma Office of Civil Rights Enforcement within 180 days of the incident occurring.
In addition to the OADA and apart from the existing federal whistleblower protections for most private employees, the Oklahoma Whistleblower Act grants government employees added protections from employer retaliation upon reporting wrongdoing to the state.
Government/public sector employees are able to report any of the following directly to the governor, media, or state lawmakers without the need to tell a supervisor:
Oklahoma is an At-Will employment state, similar to many other states across the nation. Because of this, employers may terminate employees at any time without providing notice for any non-discriminatory reason.
Workers’ Compensation in Oklahoma is governed by the Oklahoma Workers' Compensation Commission and covers employers with at least one full-time or part-time worker.
Employers doing business in Oklahoma must provide workers’ compensation benefits that are paid to their workers if he or she becomes injured while on the job. Generally, employers must have an active Workers’ Compensation Insurance Policy to maintain compliance.
While most employers in the state of Oklahoma must provide workers’ compensation benefits, certain exceptions to the law include, but are not limited to:
Employees who are disabled, or die as a result of a work-related injury or disease, must be compensated with benefits paid by the employer, either directly or through an insurance carrier.
Benefits can include:
The Oklahoma Employment Security Commission (OESC) establishes and governs the unemployment insurance program for the state, funded by employer taxes. Generally, most employers are required to provide unemployment insurance so long as wages were paid totaling $1,500 or more in a calendar quarter or have had at least one employee working for a minimum of one day per week for at least 20 weeks in a calendar year.
Employers can start managing and paying unemployment taxes by registering for an employer account on the OESC employer portal. The beginning contribution rate for newly established employers is 1.5% until the business creates an experience history of at least four quarters within a rate cycle.
For employers, the 2026 taxable wage base is $25,000 per employee per calendar year. The contribution rates are determined by an employer’s quarterly wage reports plus the state experience factor. The OESC calculates the proper unemployment contribution rate based on the benefit ratio formula annually.
For 2027, the taxable wage base decreases to $24,400 per employee per calendar year.
For 2026, the minimum contribution amount can be as low as 0.2% and the maximum contribution rate as high as 5.8%. For 2027, the minimum contribution rates are reduced to 0.1% and 5.5%, respectively.
For employees receiving UI benefits, for 2026, the maximum weekly benefit is $649 per week. For 2027, the maximum weekly benefit increases to $703 per week.
Because many businesses in Oklahoma require unemployment insurance, registering any new business for unemployment insurance should be a top priority. Employers looking to start a business in Oklahoma should review the state’s business registration requirements and begin the process with a business registration service.
Oklahoma employers must maintain certain records and workplace posters/notices to maintain compliance.
In accordance with the Oklahoma Administrative Code, employers are required to keep general payroll and wage records for up to four years. This includes:
Employers in Oklahoma are generally required to display the following state labor law posters, in addition to any federal posters or notices:
Oklahoma employers should always have the most up-to-date labor law posters to avoid severe penalties. Using a labor law poster subscription service ensures employers are covered with accurate versions of the required posters.
Oklahoma employment and discrimination laws are a mix and balance of state and federal law. Though federal law is well established, changes are often at the municipality and state level that will affect how organizations conduct themselves. Because of this, compliance requirements can prove challenging for employers to manage, especially when it comes to regulations regarding payroll, leave, and unemployment insurance taxes.
Many businesses turn to a trusted Oklahoma Payroll and HR Company with experience in local and state regulations and requirements for help. To learn more about how the right provider can help your business, contact us today or get started now to find a provider.