Oregon work laws give employees a zone-based minimum wage with no tip credit, overtime after 40 hours in a week, paid rest breaks and unpaid meal periods, protected sick time, up to 12 weeks of paid family and medical leave through a state program, predictable scheduling at large retail and food-service employers, quick final-paycheck deadlines, and anti-discrimination protections broader than federal law. Most of these rules are enforced by the Bureau of Labor and Industries (BOLI), which investigates complaints about wages, breaks, and discrimination across nearly all private-sector jobs.1Bureau of Labor and Industries. BOLI Investigations
Minimum Wage by Region
Oregon splits the state into three wage zones tied to local cost of living.2Oregon State Legislature. Oregon Code 653.025 – Minimum Wage Rate; Rules As of July 1, 2026:
- Portland metro area: $16.80 per hour
- Standard (most of the state): $15.55 per hour
- Non-urban counties: $14.55 per hour
The zone that applies is based on where you physically work, not where the company is headquartered. Rates adjust every July 1 with the Consumer Price Index, so the number can change from one summer to the next.
If you have worked in other states, one rule catches people off guard: tip credits are illegal in Oregon. Your employer has to pay the full minimum wage for your zone no matter how much you make in tips, and tips belong to you.3Bureau of Labor and Industries. Oregon Minimum Wage
Overtime and Exempt Status
Hours worked beyond 40 in a single workweek must be paid at one and one-half times your regular rate. That includes all time spent under the employer’s control, even hours the employer didn’t specifically authorize.4Oregon Public Law. Oregon Code 653.261 – Minimum Employment Conditions Some industries with daily hour limits, like manufacturing, can trigger overtime before the weekly threshold.
Not everyone qualifies. Under federal law, employees performing executive, administrative, or professional duties who earn at least $684 per week ($35,568 annually) in salary can be classified as exempt from overtime. A federal court blocked a planned increase to that threshold in late 2024, so the $684 figure still applies in 2026.5U.S. Department of Labor. Earnings Thresholds for the Executive, Administrative, and Professional Exemptions If your employer treats you as exempt but you don’t actually meet both the salary and the duties test, you’re owed overtime and can file a wage claim with BOLI. A court may award attorney fees to the employee who prevails.6Oregon State Legislature. Oregon Revised Statutes Chapter 653 – Minimum Wage – Section 653.055
Rest Breaks and Meal Periods
For every four hours you work, or a major portion of four hours, you get at least one paid ten-minute rest break with no assigned tasks.7Oregon Public Law. OAR 839-020-0050 – Meal and Rest Periods The break should fall near the middle of the work segment. Your employer can’t combine it with a meal or push it to the start or end of your shift.
Meal periods apply when your shift runs six hours or longer. The meal break is at least 30 continuous minutes and is unpaid only if you’re completely free of duties and able to leave your workstation.8Bureau of Labor and Industries. Meals and Breaks If you have to watch a phone or stay at a register during the meal, the whole period becomes paid. Some jobs where a full break isn’t possible allow a paid on-duty meal instead.
Break Time for Nursing Employees
Under the federal PUMP for Nursing Mothers Act, employers must give reasonable break time to express breast milk for up to one year after the child’s birth. The space has to be private and shielded from view, and it cannot be a bathroom.9U.S. Department of Labor. FLSA Protections to Pump at Work The PUMP Act extended these protections to workers previously excluded, including agricultural workers, nurses, and truck drivers.
Paid Sick Time
Every Oregon employer has to let workers earn at least one hour of protected sick time for every 30 hours worked, up to 40 hours per year.10Bureau of Labor and Industries. Sick Time Whether it’s paid depends on the size of the business. Employers with 10 or more employees statewide (or 6 or more with a Portland location) must pay the time. Smaller employers must still let it accrue and protect the absence, but the time can be unpaid.
Accrual starts on your first day of work, though the employer can require 90 days on the job before you use any of it.11Oregon Public Law. Oregon Code 653.606 – Employee Count; Paid and Unpaid Sick Time Qualifying reasons include your own illness, caring for a family member, or dealing with the aftermath of domestic violence or sexual assault.
Paid Leave Oregon
Paid Leave Oregon is a separate state-run insurance program for longer absences. You can receive up to 12 weeks of benefits in a 52-week period, with an additional two weeks if you’re pregnant or recovering from childbirth.12Paid Leave Oregon. Common Questions To qualify you must have earned at least $1,000 in Oregon during your base year before applying.13Paid Leave Oregon. Paid Leave Oregon Home
Qualifying events include bonding with a new child through birth, adoption, or foster placement; recovering from a serious health condition; caring for a family member with a serious health condition; and addressing safety concerns tied to domestic violence or stalking.
The weekly benefit is tied to how your average weekly wage compares to the state average. If you earn 65% or less of the state average weekly wage, the program replaces 100% of your pay. Above that threshold, the replacement percentage drops, and the weekly benefit is capped at 120% of the state average weekly wage.14Paid Leave Oregon. Paid Leave Oregon Employee Guidebook Applications go through the state, not your employer’s HR department.
The program is funded through payroll contributions totaling 1% of wages. Employees pay 60% of that amount, and employers with 25 or more workers pay the other 40%. Businesses with fewer than 25 employees don’t owe the employer share, but their workers still contribute and remain eligible for benefits.12Paid Leave Oregon. Common Questions
Predictive Scheduling for Large Employers
Oregon’s Fair Work Week Act covers retail, hospitality, and food-service employers with 500 or more workers worldwide.15Bureau of Labor and Industries. Predictive Scheduling If yours qualifies, you’re entitled to a written work schedule at least 14 calendar days before the first day it covers. Changes made after posting without that 14-day lead time trigger predictability pay:
- Added hours, a date or time change with no lost hours, or an extra shift: one additional hour of pay at your regular rate.16Oregon State Legislature. Oregon Revised Statutes Chapter 653 – Minimum Wage – Section 653.455
- Reduced hours, a cancelled shift, or an on-call shift where you aren’t called in: half your regular hourly rate for each scheduled hour you don’t work.
You also get at least ten hours of rest between shifts. If you agree to work back-to-back with less than ten hours off, the employer owes time-and-a-half for the hours falling inside that rest window. Predictability pay doesn’t apply to changes caused by natural disasters or similar events outside the employer’s control.
Final Paycheck Rules
Oregon is an at-will state, so either side can end the job at any time for any lawful reason. The main exceptions are firings based on discrimination, retaliation for exercising a legal right, or breach of an employment contract.17Bureau of Labor and Industries. Employment at Will
Whatever the reason for separation, the final check is due fast:
- Fired or terminated by mutual agreement: by the end of the next business day.18Oregon State Legislature. Oregon Code 652.140 – Payment of Wages on Termination of Employment
- You quit with at least 48 hours’ notice: immediately on your last day.
- You quit without 48 hours’ notice: within five business days or by the next regular payday, whichever comes first.
The check must cover all hours worked through the moment of separation, plus any contractually promised benefits such as accrued vacation if the employer’s policy provides for payout. Your employer can’t withhold money for unreturned equipment or similar debts unless a specific statute authorizes the deduction.
Penalty Wages When the Final Check Is Late
If an employer willfully fails to deliver your final wages on time, penalty wages start accruing at your regular rate for eight hours per day, capped at 30 days of wages. There’s a wrinkle worth knowing. If you send written notice of nonpayment and the employer pays the full amount within 12 days, the penalty is capped at 100% of the unpaid wages. Skipping the written notice does not help you; without it, the penalty is capped at 100% of the unpaid amount regardless of timing.19Oregon State Legislature. Oregon Code 652.150 – Penalty Wage for Failure to Pay Wages on Termination So if the check is late, put your demand in writing right away. That starts the 12-day clock that can unlock the full 30-day penalty if they still drag their feet.
During employment, employers must set a regular payday, and the gap between paydays can’t exceed 35 days from the start of work or from the last payday.20Oregon Public Law. Oregon Code 652.120 – Establishing Regular Payday; Pay Intervals
Discrimination and Retaliation
Oregon’s employment discrimination statute reaches further than federal law. Under ORS 659A, employers can’t make hiring, firing, or other employment decisions based on race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, marital status, age, disability, or familial status.21Oregon Public Law. Oregon Code 659A.006 – Declaration of Policy Against Unlawful Discrimination Sexual orientation, gender identity, and marital status go beyond what federal Title VII explicitly covers.
Retaliation is also illegal. An employer can’t fire, demote, or otherwise punish you for filing a complaint, participating in an investigation, or opposing discriminatory practices. That applies whether you go to BOLI at the state level or the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission federally.22U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Retaliation – Making It Personal
Employee or Independent Contractor
Most of the protections above only apply to employees, not independent contractors, so classification matters. The IRS looks at three categories: whether the business controls how you do the work, whether it controls the financial side of the job (pay method, expense reimbursement, who provides tools), and the nature of the overall relationship (contracts, benefits, duration).23Internal Revenue Service. Worker Classification: Employee or Independent Contractor
A business that misclassifies an employee as a contractor faces back taxes, penalties on unpaid Social Security and Medicare contributions, and potential liability for wages and benefits the worker should have received. Workers who suspect misclassification can file a complaint with BOLI or the IRS.
Workplace Safety and Mass Layoffs
Oregon runs its own occupational safety and health program through Oregon OSHA, which adopts many federal standards and adds state-specific rules.24Occupational Safety and Health Administration. Oregon State Plan Employers must keep the workplace free of recognized hazards that could cause death or serious harm and provide protective equipment when hazards can’t be eliminated. You can file a safety complaint directly with Oregon OSHA, and retaliation for doing so is prohibited.
If you work for an employer with 100 or more employees, the federal WARN Act requires at least 60 calendar days of written notice before a plant closing or mass layoff affecting 50 or more workers at a single site.25U.S. Department of Labor. Plant Closings and Layoffs Employers who skip the notice without a valid excuse can owe back pay for each day of the violation.
How to File a Complaint
BOLI handles complaints about wage violations, missed breaks, discrimination, and other workplace issues. You can file online, by phone, or at a BOLI office.26Bureau of Labor and Industries. For Workers For wage claims, BOLI can investigate, order back pay, and assess penalties. For discrimination claims, the agency conducts its own investigation and may refer the case for further legal action. Timing matters: most wage claims must be filed within one year of the violation, and discrimination claims generally have tighter deadlines, so don’t wait to start the paperwork.