AR · State teen labor law
Arkansas teen labor law — work hours, permits, and restricted jobs
Arkansas removed the Employment Certificate requirement for minors under 16 in 2023 (Youth Hiring Act). Daily and weekly caps remain (10 hours/day, 54 hours/week for 16-17-year-olds) with an 11:00 PM school-night curfew.
Quick facts
School year vs summer hour caps
Arkansas applies similar caps year-round, with small calendar adjustments shown below. Each age band below shows both calendars side-by-side — a distinction federal summaries and most state-comparison tables skip.
Ages 14–15
School year
When school is in session
- Hrs/day (school day)
- 3 hr
- Hrs/day (Sat / Sun / holiday)
- 8 hr
- Max hours per week
- 18 hr
- Time window
- 06:00 – 19:00
Note: Arkansas allows a 6:00 AM start (vs. federal 7:00 AM). No work during school hours.
Summer / school breaks
When school is out
- Max hours per day
- 8 hr
- Max hours per week
- 40 hr
- Time window
- 06:00 – 21:00
Note: Summer hours apply June 1 through Labor Day; evening cutoff extends to 9:00 PM.
Ages 16–17
School year
When school is in session
- Max hours per day
- 10 hr
- Max hours per week
- 54 hr
- Time window
- 06:00 – 23:00
Note: Daily cap of 10 hours and weekly cap of 54 hours during the school year. 11:00 PM school-night curfew.
Summer / school breaks
When school is out
- Max hours per day
- 10 hr
- Max hours per week
- 54 hr
- Time window
- 06:00 – 00:00
Note: Up to midnight on nights not preceding a school day. Weekly cap remains 54 hours.
Work permit
Arkansas does not require a state-issued work permit for minors.
Arkansas eliminated the Employment Certificate requirement for minors under 16 in 2023 (Act 195, the 'Youth Hiring Act of 2023'). Employers must now keep age verification on file (driver's license, certified birth certificate, or state ID). The Arkansas Department of Labor enforces remaining child-labor rules through complaint and inspection.
Jobs by age
Age-specific guides to common allowed jobs in Arkansas, with the federal hour caps and the state’s stricter rules built in.
Restricted occupations
All federal hazardous orders HO-1 through HO-17
Federal: 29 CFR Part 570
Operating power-driven meat-processing machines
Federal: HO-10
Roofing operations and work on or about a roof
Federal: HO-16
Door-to-door sales for minors under 16 without adult supervision
State: A.C.A. §11-6-110
Sale or service of alcohol for minors under 19
State: A.C.A. §3-3-218
See the full federal hazardous orders (HO-1 to HO-17) for plain-English summaries, or the Arkansas hazardous-orders deep-dive for the federal floor plus Arkansas-specific additions.
Breaks & meal periods
Arkansas has no verified state law requiring a meal or rest break for minors, so the federal floor applies: the Fair Labor Standards Act does not require employers to give a meal or rest break at any age. An employer can legally schedule a teen for a full shift without one. If a short break of 5–20 minutes is given it must be paid; a bona fide meal period of 30 minutes or more can be unpaid when the teen is completely relieved of duty.
Confirm with the Arkansas Department of Labor before relying on a break, and see the federal breaks & meal-period reference for the FLSA paid-vs-unpaid rules.
Pay & minimum wage
Arkansas sets its own minimum wage and minors generally earn the full rate — there is no general youth subminimum a teen can be paid. The structure is stable; the dollar amount changes almost every year, so confirm the current figure with the Arkansas Department of Labor.
- How minors are paid
- Full state minimum
- State minimum wage
- Set by state law
- Below-minimum youth rate
- Not permitted
- Subminimum structure
- Two below-minimum paths exist, both set at 85% of the state minimum and both certificate-gated: a full-time-student rate (certificate from the Arkansas Department of Labor, hours capped) and a learner / apprentice rate (U.S. DOL certificate under 29 CFR Part 520). No general non-certificate youth or first-job rate.
A teen earns the full minimum; any lower rate needs a special DOL certificate.
Arkansas sets its own minimum wage above the federal rate. Every below-minimum path is certificate-only, so there is no rate an employer can apply to a teen without a certificate — an ordinary first-job teen earns the full state minimum.
Rates change yearly. This page describes the legal structure, not the current dollar amount. State and federal minimum wages are adjusted regularly — always verify the live figure with your state Department of Labor or the U.S. DOL before relying on it.
See the federal youth minimum wage reference for the $4.25 90-day rule, student / learner certificates, the tipped cash wage, and how a higher state minimum wins.
Statute: Ark. Code §§ 11-4-210, 11-4-213
Agricultural work carve-out
Arkansas largely mirrors the federal agricultural carve-out under FLSA § 213(c)(1). The rules below confirm what applies for farm work in this state.
Mirrors federal Ag HO-1 to Ag HO-11.
Arkansas sets the minimum age for off-family-farm agricultural work at 14 outside school hours and at 16 during school hours — stricter than the federal '12-13 with written parental consent' tier (Arkansas does not recognize that federal tier for ag). § 11-6-104 permits minors under 14 to work for their parents or guardians during school vacation in occupations owned or controlled by them, which carries the family-farm exemption. Act 195 of 2023 (the "Youth Hiring Act") eliminated the under-16 Employment Certificate requirement statewide, so no state employment certificate is needed for ag work. Arkansas imposes no daily/weekly state hour cap on agricultural employment, and the federal § 213(c) carve-out (no daily/weekly federal cap outside school hours for ag) governs for hours. Federal Ag HO-1 to Ag HO-11 govern at 16+ off the family farm — under-16 may not operate heavy farm machinery or perform other hazardous farm tasks regardless of family-farm status.
See the federal agricultural-work reference for the FLSA § 213(c) baseline, parental-exemption rules, and the Ag HO-1 to Ag HO-11 hazardous list.
Statute: A.C.A. §§ 11-6-104, 11-6-106; Act 195 of 2023 (Youth Hiring Act)
Family-business carve-out
Arkansas largely mirrors the federal parent-owned-business carve-out under FLSA § 213(c)(1)(C). The rules below confirm what applies when a minor works for a parent-owned business in this state.
Federal hazardous orders always apply — the parent-owned-business carve-out never reaches mining, manufacturing, or HO-listed work.
Arkansas's pre-2023 child-labor framework already carried the federal parent-employed exemption through § 11-6-104's express permission for under-14 minors to work for parents or guardians in occupations owned or controlled by them. Act 195 of 2023 (the Youth Hiring Act) went further and eliminated the under-16 Employment Certificate requirement for all minor employment statewide — meaning no state permit is required for any minor in a parent-owned business. Arkansas's 16-17 hour caps (10 hrs/day, 54 hrs/week, 11:00 PM school-night curfew, midnight non-school-night) operate as a statewide standard but do not separately apply to parent-employed minors in a non-hazardous setting under the carry-through of the federal § 213(c)(1)(C) framework — verify the specific arrangement with the Arkansas Department of Labor. Federal hazardous orders HO-1 through HO-17 always apply, and Arkansas's hazardous-occupations restrictions at § 11-6-106 carry through regardless of parent ownership. Parent-owned manufacturing or mining employment for under-16 remains barred by both state and federal law.
See the federal family-business reference for the FLSA § 213(c)(1)(C) baseline, ownership-structure rules, and the hazardous-occupations overlay that always applies.
Statute: A.C.A. § 11-6-104 (parent/guardian-controlled-occupation carve-out); Act 195 of 2023 (Youth Hiring Act — eliminating under-16 Employment Certificate); A.C.A. § 11-6-106 (hazardous occupations); federal mirror of 29 USC § 213(c)(1)(C)
Entertainment-industry work
Arkansas does not separately regulate child performers (film, TV, theater, modeling). The general age-band hour caps and work-permit rules above apply to entertainment-industry work for minors. Federal FLSA carves out actors and performers from the general 14-year minimum age (29 CFR § 570.122), but neither federal nor Arkansas law imposes a blocked-trust requirement on a child performer’s earnings.
States with dedicated child-performer frameworks (Coogan-style trust accounts, on-set studio teachers, performer-specific permits) include California, New York, Florida, Louisiana, New Mexico, Pennsylvania, and Illinois.
Where these rules come from
State code: Arkansas Code §§ 11-6-101 to 11-6-117 (Child Labor)
US DOL Wage & Hour Division: https://www.labor.arkansas.gov/labor-standards/child-labor/
Last verified:
Informational only — verify with the Arkansas Department of Labor before hiring or starting work.
Frequently asked questions
- Can a 14-year-old work in Arkansas?
- Yes — under Arkansas law a 14-year-old can work up to 3 hours per school day, up to 18 hours per week, between 06:00 and 19:00.
- How many hours can a 15-year-old work during school in Arkansas?
- When school is in session, Arkansas allows a 15-year-old to work up to 3 hours per school day, up to 18 hours per week, between 06:00 and 19:00. During summer or school breaks the cap rises to up to 8 hours per school day, up to 40 hours per week, between 06:00 and 21:00.
- Does Arkansas require a work permit for minors?
- Arkansas does not require a state-issued work permit for minors. Employers still must follow federal FLSA rules on hour caps and restricted occupations.
- How many hours can a 16-year-old work during summer in Arkansas?
- During summer or school breaks, Arkansas allows a 16-year-old to work up to 10 hours per school day, up to 54 hours per week, between 06:00 and 00:00. Federal FLSA caps for 16- and 17-year-olds do not limit weekly hours, so the stricter state rule (if any) applies.
- Can a teen be paid less than minimum wage in Arkansas?
- Generally no. Arkansas sets its own minimum wage and minors earn the full rate — there is no general youth subminimum, and any below-minimum rate requires a special DOL certificate. Minimum-wage dollar amounts change almost every year, so confirm the current figure with the Arkansas Department of Labor. See the Pay and minimum wage section on this page.
- What jobs can a minor not do in Arkansas?
- Arkansas prohibits minors from a number of hazardous occupations, including: all federal hazardous orders ho-1 through ho-17; operating power-driven meat-processing machines; roofing operations and work on or about a roof. The full list of federal hazardous orders (HO-1 through HO-17) also applies. See the Arkansas Code §§ 11-6-101 to 11-6-117 (Child Labor) citation on this page for the statutory source.