Arkansas Amends Wage and Compensation Laws

The General assembly of Arkansas amended new rules on wage payments and final compensation in Act 853 of House Bill 1751 and the new measures are expected to take effect on August 10, 2019. The new legislation allows employers in Arkansas to pay their employees through payroll debit cards and require their final wages to be made by the next regular payday.

Under the existing law, employers may pay their employee’s wages by cash, electronic deposit or check and the new provision allows employers to pay their employees' wages through a preloaded debit card if an employee receives a free withdrawal for each deposit made to the card. Most importantly, an employer that discharges an employee will be required to pay all wages owed by the next regular payday to their discharged employee. A failure to make payment within the seven days of the regular payday will result in an employer owing the employee double the wages due. 

Additionally, under the current law, employers that provide employees with lodging, board or apparel can include their reasonable value as part of the hourly wage and the allowances for those items together may not exceed thirty cents per hour. The new measures remove the thirty cents per hour allowance limit for lodging, board, apparel and other items. Under the amended law, employers will need to provide an allowance equal to the fair and reasonable cost of board, lodging, apparel or other items.  

For more information, please see the Arkansas House Bill 1751 Act 853 here.

Thank you for choosing Paylocity as your payroll tax partner. Should you have any questions please contact your Paylocity Account Manager.

This information is provided as a courtesy, may change and is not intended as legal or tax guidance. Employers with questions or concerns outside the scope of a Payroll Service Provider are encouraged to seek the advice of a qualified CPA, Tax Attorney or Advisor.