West Virginia Labor Laws

In the US, the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) are vital federal laws that govern time management and worker compensation in the U.S., ensuring fair labor practices across various sectors, including non-profit, public, and private organizations.

West Virginia time management laws outline certain work hour regulations for all employees in the state following the West Virginia Minimum Wage and Maximum Hours Standards for Employees Act. These laws only apply to public or private employers with six employees in a location. 

Under state law, a regular work week consists of 168 hours over seven consecutive days. Employers can choose the beginning and end of the workweek on any day of the week and at any hour of the day. 

Employees must be compensated for all hours worked. On-call employees are also entitled to pay, provided that the employee is required to remain in or near work premises. 

Breaks are also paid in West Virginia. However, if an employee works 24 or more consecutive hours, with scheduled meal, rest and sleep periods (usually lasting eight hours or longer), break periods lasting 30 minutes more and sleep time can be unpaid. 

Overtime pay is calculated for all hours worked beyond 40 in a workweek. However, as per state law, certain employees may be exempt from receiving overtime pay.  

Employees in West Virginia are also entitled to certain types of leave under state or federal law. Depending on the law, these leaves may be paid or unpaid. Additionally, employees can receive time off for certain recognized public holidays.  

Employers who contravene these state time management laws face severe legal ramifications, including fines, back pay, and damages. If a worker believes their employer has violated their rights, they can request assistance from the West Virginia Division of Labor for investigation and legal action.

West Virginia labor law prohibits employers from discriminating against workers in any stage of the employment process — including hiring, termination, and promotion, based on the following protected characteristics: 

West Virginia follows the at-will-employment law, which means that an employer or employee can choose to end an employment contract for any or no reason at any time. However, employment contracts cannot be terminated due to discriminatory or retaliatory reasons, or if an employment contract outlines a specific termination process. 

After termination of employment, an employee’s final wages must be paid before or on their next regularly scheduled payday. The same rule applies if the employee resigns or quits. 

However, if an employee is laid off from work, their final wages must be paid on their next regularly scheduled payday.

Some additional labor laws in West Virginia that affect employment include:

• Health Insurance Continuation Laws: Under the federal Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA), employees and their dependents in West Virginia can continue their group health insurance benefits after a qualifying life event such as voluntary and involuntary termination, work-hour reduction, death, or divorce. Employees can receive coverage for 18 to 36 months. However, they may be required to pay up to 102% of the cost of the plan as a premium. 
• Workplace Safety Laws: The federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and the West Virginia Occupational Safety and Health Act both outline workplace safety regulations in West Virginia. OSHA requires private employers to provide their workers with a risk-free and safe workplace. They provide education and training resources to reduce any work-related injuries and fatalities. Additionally, under the West Virginia Occupational Safety and Health Act, public employers are required to provide a hazard-free workplace to prevent death, serious harm, or illnesses in the workplace. 
• Whistleblower Protection Laws: The West Virginia Whistleblower Law protects public employees who report any waste or wrongdoing in their workplace. Employers are prohibited from retaliating against employees who report these violations. Retaliatory actions include discharging, threatening, or discriminating against employees in their compensation or job conditions. Employees who participate in investigations or inquiries related to these violations are also protected from retaliation. 
• Employee Recordkeeping Laws:  Employers in West Virginia are required to maintain written personnel records on-site for a minimum of two years. These records must include the employee’s name, address, wage rate, work hour details, payroll deductions, and the amount paid in each pay period. 

West Virginia’s minimum hourly wage is $8.75 for all employees working for employers with six or more workers employed in a single location. 

However, employees working for smaller employers are entitled to earn the federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour. 

Tipped employees in West Virginia are entitled to 30% of the state minimum wage, provided they work for an employer with six or more workers. Employers can keep 70% of a tipped employee’s wage as tip credit, as per state law.

At the current minimum wage of $8.75 per hour, tipped employees must be paid a cash wage of $2.62 per hour, with employers keeping $6.125 as tip credit.

For tipped employees working with smaller employers, federal law applies, which entitles tipped employees to a reduced cash wage of $2.13 per hour, allowing employers to keep $5.12 as tip credit.

However, employers must ensure that a tipped employee’s wages — when combined with their tips — equal the state or federal minimum wage (whichever applies). If not, the employer is required to make up the difference.

 In West Virginia, certain employees are exempted from the minimum wage requirement. These employees are as follows:

• Federal government employees
• Volunteers or individuals working for educational, charitable, religious, fraternal, or nonprofit organizations where no true employer–employee relationship exists
• Newsboys, shoeshine boys, golf caddies, bowling alley pin boys, and pin chasers
• Traveling or outside salespeople
• People employed by their parent, child, or spouse
• Professionals, executives, and administrators earning at least $684 per week
• Individuals employed for on-the-job training
• People with severe physical or mental disabilities who can only work in nonprofit sheltered workshops
• Employees of boys’ or girls’ summer camps
• Individuals aged 62 or older receiving Social Security retirement or survivor benefits
• Agricultural workers (as defined in the FLSA)
• Firefighters employed by the state or its agencies
• Theater ushers
• Part-time student workers enrolled in a recognized school or college
• Employees of local or interurban bus carriers
• Salesmen, parts clerks, or mechanics in auto, trailer, truck, farm implement, or aircraft dealerships (when employed by non-manufacturers), but only regarding maximum hours and overtime rules
• Employees regulated by the U.S. Department of Transportation for qualifications and maximum hours
• Per diem or designated employees of the West Virginia Senate, House of Delegates, or Joint Committee on Government and Finance
• Seasonal workers for commercial whitewater outfitters, but only if working less than 7 months in a year
• Seasonal amusement park workers, but only if working less than 7 months in a year

In West Virginia, employers are obligated to pay their employees at least twice each month, with no more than a 19-day interval between pay periods. In some cases, the Commissioner of Labor may grant an exception that allows employers to pay their workers less often than twice per month.

Railroad companies in West Virginia have their own pay schedule guidelines, with employees receiving wages on or before the 1st day of each month for the first half of the preceding month’s work and on or before the 15th day of each month for the last half of the preceding month’s work.

Employers in West Virginia are either subject to federal or state overtime provisions. 

To be eligible for overtime pay under state law, the following conditions must be met:

• The business must have six or more employees working in a single location.
• 80% of the business’s workforce must not be covered by the FLSA’s overtime provisions for interstate commerce employees.
• The business does not qualify as an enterprise under federal law. 

Employees working in businesses that meet the abovementioned conditions are entitled to overtime pay for all hours worked above 40 in a workweek. 

Overtime pay is calculated at 1.5 times the employee’s regular hourly rate. For employees earning the state minimum wage, overtime pay amounts to $13.13 per hour.

On the other hand, if a business qualifies for federal coverage, then federal overtime laws apply, which also require overtime pay for all hours worked over 40 in a workweek. 

This pay is calculated at 1.5 times the employee’s regular hourly wage. However, for minimum wage employees under federal law, overtime pay amounts to $10.88 per hour. 

Learn more about overtime laws in West Virginia. 

Some employees in West Virginia are not entitled to overtime pay, even if they work more than 40 hours in a workweek, as per state law. These include:

• U.S. government employees
• Volunteers in educational, charitable, religious, fraternal, or non-profit organizations
• Newsboys, shoeshine boys, golf caddies, pin-boys, and pin chasers in bowling alleys
• Traveling and outside salesmen
• Individuals employed by their parent, son, daughter, or spouse
• Bona fide professional, executive, or administrative employees earning $684 per week 
• On-the-job trainees
• Handicapped individuals working in a nonprofit sheltered workshop
• Boys or girls summer camp employees
• Individuals aged 62 and older receiving Social Security benefits
• Agricultural workers
• Firefighters employed by the state
• Ushers in theaters
• Students working 24 hours or less per week
• Individuals employed by a local interurban motorbus carrier
• Employees under Federal Department of Transportation (DOT) regulations
• Individuals employed on a per diem basis by the West Virginia State Senate, the House of Delegates, or the Joint Committee on Government and Finance
• Salesmen, parts men, or mechanics engaged in selling or servicing (excluding manufacturing) automobiles, trailers, trucks, farm implements, or aircraft
• Seasonal employees of commercial whitewater outfitters and amusement park workers who work less than 7 months in a calendar year

Learn more about West Virginia salaried employees’ laws.

Employees in West Virginia are entitled to a paid 20-minute meal break if they work six or more hours in a workday or a single shift under state law. 

This break can be scheduled at any reasonable time during the employee’s workday at the employer’s discretion. This break can also be provided in smaller increments.

However, state break laws only apply if the employee is not already offered rest or lunch breaks by their employer. Moreover, if an employee is given enough time for bathroom breaks or is allowed to eat while working, an employer is not required to provide exclusive break time under state law.

Employees in West Virginia are entitled to a paid 20-minute meal break if they work six or more hours in a workday or a single shift under state law.

This break can be scheduled at any reasonable time during the employee’s workday at the employer’s discretion. This break can also be provided in smaller increments.

However, state break laws only apply if the employee is not already offered rest or lunch breaks by their employer. Moreover, if an employee is given enough time for bathroom breaks or is allowed to eat while working, an employer is not required to provide exclusive break time under state law.

Nursing employees in West Virginia are entitled to take a reasonable amount of time to breastfeed or express milk on the job for 12 months following the birth of their child as per the FLSA.

Breastfeeding breaks can be taken whenever the employee has the need to express milk. Employers in West Virginia should provide nursing employees access to a designated area — not a bathroom — that is free from public intrusion to pump milk or breastfeed.

However, only employers with 50 or more workers are required to provide breastfeeding breaks under federal law.

The following are the required leave types that West Virginia employers must provide to their employees:

• Parental Leave: Under the West Virginia Parental Leave Act, all employees working for various units of State Government or County Boards of Education are entitled to have 12 weeks of unpaid leave in a 12-month period for reasons including the birth of a baby, adoption placement, or to take care of an immediate family member’s serious health condition. Parental leave can only be utilized after the employee exhausts their annual and personal leave limits.
• Family and Medical Leave: The federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA)entitles eligible employees in West Virginia to take up to 12 weeks of job-protected leave per year for certain family or medical reasons. Qualifying events include the birth or care for a newborn, adoption or foster care placement of a child, caring for an immediate family member with a serious health condition, an employee’s own serious health condition, or an employee’s spouse/parent/child being on active military duty. To be eligible for leave under FMLA, an employee must have worked for their employer for at least 12 months and have accumulated 1,250 work hours in the last 12-month period. 
• Annual Leave: State employees in West Virginia can start accumulating annual leave from the first day of state employment. The accrual rate and maximum yearly carryover amount vary based on an employee’s years of service. 
• Jury Leave: West Virginia state employees are entitled to paid jury duty leave when they are summoned to serve as a juror or a witness before any legally authorized body. 
• Military Leave: State employees in West Virginia who serve in the National Guard or any federal armed service reserve are eligible to receive 30 days of military leave with pay. Employees who get called to active duty can get an extra 30 days of leave. If an employee needs to be away from work for more than 60 days, they can use their annual leave with pay or an approved personal leave without pay to cover their extended absence.

The following are the official holidays that will be observed in West Virginia in 2025: 

Child labor laws in West Virginia adhere to both state and federal regulations. These laws are set in place to ensure the safety of minors employed, as well as to protect their right to education. 

If a state and federal law regarding child employment contradict, the law that provides higher protection to the child is followed. 

Any individual under the age of 18 is considered a minor in West Virginia. The minimum age of employment for minors is 14 in the state. 

Minors aged under 14 can only be employed in non-hazardous agricultural and horticultural jobs, domestic work requiring them to live with their employer, jobs for their parents and guardians, as actors or performers, or in newspaper delivery. 

Although no state mandate requires work permits for minors, minors aged 14 and 15 can only work if they provide an age certificate to their employer. 

This certificate is issued by the State Commissioner of Labor or any individual authorized by the Commissioner. 

For minors aged 14 and 15 in West Virginia, work hour regulations vary based on whether school is in session or not. 

When school is in session, minors cannot work more than three hours daily and 18 hours weekly. On non-school days, these minors can work up to eight hours per day, and 40 hours per week. 

Working hours cannot be scheduled before 7 a.m. or after 7 p.m.

During summer break lasting from June 1st until Labor Day, these minors can work up to 40 hours a week, with work hours scheduled between 7 a.m. and 9 p.m. 

There are no work hour regulations for minors aged 16 and 17. However, employers in West Virginia are required to give these minors a 20-minute break after they have worked for six or more consecutive hours in a shift.