Kentucky · Unpaid wages · Updated Oct 2026

Kentucky wage claims: how to get your unpaid pay

Not paid for all your hours, no overtime, or no final paycheck? Here is Kentucky’s minimum wage, the final-paycheck rules, the deadlines and where to file, in plain English.

$7.25minimum wage in 2026
$2.13tipped cash wage
Nodaily overtime
Payday or 14 daysfinal pay if fired
3 yearstime limit to file (see details)

Where to file in Kentucky

Wage claims in Kentucky go to this state office. Filing is usually free.

Office
Kentucky Education and Labor Cabinet, Division of Wages and Hours
Phone
502-564-3534
Languages
Online complaint form and paper complaint form available in Spanish.
File onlineOfficial wage claim page

For federal minimum wage and overtime you can also contact the US Department of Labor, Wage and Hour Division: 1-866-487-9243. How federal claims work.

How to file a wage claim in Kentucky

  1. Gather your records

    Dates and hours worked, your pay rate, pay stubs or bank deposits, texts or schedules, and the employer's name and address.

  2. Ask in writing first (optional)

    A demand letter gives your employer a deadline to pay and shows you tried. Use the free letter on this page.

  3. File with Kentucky Education and Labor Cabinet

    File a wage and hour complaint with the Division of Wages and Hours online, or use the paper complaint form (English or Spanish). The division investigates complaints about minimum wage, overtime, unpaid wages, illegal deductions, breaks and child labor. The online form asks for your Social Security number. Filing is free. If you ask in writing, the state can take your minimum wage or overtime claim and sue the employer for you (KRS 337.385(4)). Questions: 502-564-3534 or [email protected].

  4. Watch the deadline

    3 years after the claim arose for court or administrative actions under KRS Chapter 337 that have no other specific deadline (KRS 337.385(5), effective July 15, 2024).

Minimum wage and overtime in Kentucky

Kentucky's minimum wage is $7.25 an hour. If the federal minimum wage goes up, Kentucky's rate rises to match it (KRS 337.275). No increase is scheduled.

Minimum wage (2026)
$7.25
Tipped cash wage
$2.13

Overtime

You must get 1.5 times your regular rate for hours over 40 in a workweek (KRS 337.285). The state rule does not apply to some workers, including retail store and restaurant, hotel and motel employees, though federal overtime may still cover them. Seventh-day rule: if your employer lets you work all 7 days of a workweek, you get 1.5 times your rate for the 7th day, unless you worked 40 hours or less that week (KRS 337.050). No daily overtime.

Paydays: At least twice a month, paying all wages earned up to a day no more than 18 days before payday (KRS 337.020).

Your final paycheck in Kentucky

If you are fired or laid off
By the next normal payday or within 14 days after you leave, whichever is later.
If you quit
Same: by the next normal payday or 14 days after you leave, whichever is later.
Law
KRS 337.055

When was your final paycheck due in Kentucky?

Enter how your job ended and your last day of work. We show your state’s rule and, when the rule is a simple number of days or your next payday, the date.

Enter your last day of workThe result appears when you pick a date.

Dates are approximate: we skip weekends for business and working days but not holidays. Nothing you type here is sent anywhere.

Penalties your employer may owe

For unpaid minimum wage or overtime, the employer owes the unpaid amount plus an equal amount as liquidated (double) damages, plus court costs and attorney's fees; the court can reduce the extra if the employer acted in good faith (KRS 337.385(1)-(2)). If the employer used forced labor, at least three times the wages owed (KRS 337.385(3)). The state can also fine employers $100 to $1,000 per violation, and for illegal deductions the employer must repay you with 10% yearly interest (KRS 337.990).

Retaliation and immigration status

Your employer may not fire or punish you for complaining to your employer or the state that you were not paid minimum wage or overtime, or for starting or testifying in a wage case; the state fines employers $100 to $1,000 for this (KRS 337.990(9)).

Federal law also makes it illegal to fire or punish you for filing a wage complaint or cooperating in an investigation (US DOL Fact Sheet #77A).

The US Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division enforces federal wage law without regard to immigration status, and its services are free and confidential whether you are documented or not (US DOL).

Deductions and tips

Your employer may deduct only what the law requires or what you authorize in writing, and may never deduct fines, shared-till cash shortages, breakage, bounced checks you were allowed to accept, or losses you did not cause on purpose (KRS 337.060). Your employer may not take any of your tips. A tip pool may include tipped workers but not salaried employees, managers or supervisors (KRS 337.065). With a tip credit, your cash wage must be at least the federal tipped wage ($2.13) and wage plus tips must reach $7.25 (KRS 337.275(2)).

Good to know in Kentucky

  • Kentucky has a seventh-day overtime rule: work all 7 days in a week and the 7th day is paid at time and a half (KRS 337.050).
  • Since April 10, 2026, managers and supervisors may not share in a tip pool (KRS 337.065(4)).
  • Since July 15, 2024, most wage claims under Kentucky law must be brought within 3 years (KRS 337.385(5)).

Forms

Wage-theft calculator for Kentucky

Work out what you should have been paid: at least the minimum wage for every hour, plus overtime. Then compare it with what you got.

If a higher city or county minimum wage applies where you work, enter that rate if it is more than you were promised.

Before taxes, if you know it. Leave it empty to see only what you were owed.

Fill in your pay, hours and weeksThe result appears as you type.

Kentucky overtime rule: You must get 1.5 times your regular rate for hours over 40 in a workweek (KRS 337.285). The state rule does not apply to some workers, including retail store and restaurant, hotel and motel employees, though federal overtime may still cover them. Seventh-day rule: if your employer lets you work all 7 days of a workweek, you get 1.5 times your rate for the 7th day, unless you worked 40 hours or less that week (KRS 337.050). No daily overtime.

Penalties your employer may also owe in Kentucky: For unpaid minimum wage or overtime, the employer owes the unpaid amount plus an equal amount as liquidated (double) damages, plus court costs and attorney's fees; the court can reduce the extra if the employer acted in good faith (KRS 337.385(1)-(2)). If the employer used forced labor, at least three times the wages owed (KRS 337.385(3)). The state can also fine employers $100 to $1,000 per violation, and for illegal deductions the employer must repay you with 10% yearly interest (KRS 337.990).

Tipped workers: this calculator does not count tips. In many states your employer may pay a lower cash wage if your tips make up the difference to the minimum wage; see your state’s page.

An estimate from the numbers you enter and Kentucky’s rules, not legal advice. Nothing you type in this calculator is sent anywhere.

Free demand letter for unpaid wages

A short, firm letter asking your employer to pay what it owes by a deadline. Many workers get paid at this step, and in some states a written demand starts penalties or makes the employer pay your attorney fees later. Fill this in, then download the letter as PDF or Word (or copy it), sign it, keep a copy and send it in a way you can prove, such as certified mail or an email you keep.

When you download or copy the letter, the details you typed are saved on our server. See our privacy policy.

The name on your pay stubs, checks or the business sign. If you only know the owner’s name, use that.

Use the calculator above if you are not sure.

We suggest 10 days.

What were you not paid? (required)

One or two sentences with dates, hours and amounts.

Questions about wage claims in Kentucky

Where do I file a wage claim in Kentucky?

With Kentucky Education and Labor Cabinet, Division of Wages and Hours. Phone: 502-564-3534. File a wage and hour complaint with the Division of Wages and Hours online, or use the paper complaint form (English or Spanish). The division investigates complaints about minimum wage, overtime, unpaid wages, illegal deductions, breaks and child labor. The online form asks for your Social Security number. Filing is free. If you ask in writing, the state can take your minimum wage or overtime claim and sue the employer for you (KRS 337.385(4)). Questions: 502-564-3534 or [email protected].

What is the minimum wage in Kentucky in 2026?

Kentucky's minimum wage is $7.25 an hour. If the federal minimum wage goes up, Kentucky's rate rises to match it (KRS 337.275). No increase is scheduled.

Does Kentucky have daily overtime?

You must get 1.5 times your regular rate for hours over 40 in a workweek (KRS 337.285). The state rule does not apply to some workers, including retail store and restaurant, hotel and motel employees, though federal overtime may still cover them. Seventh-day rule: if your employer lets you work all 7 days of a workweek, you get 1.5 times your rate for the 7th day, unless you worked 40 hours or less that week (KRS 337.050). No daily overtime.

When is my final paycheck due in Kentucky if I'm fired?

By the next normal payday or within 14 days after you leave, whichever is later.

When is my final paycheck due in Kentucky if I quit?

Same: by the next normal payday or 14 days after you leave, whichever is later.

How long do I have to file a wage claim in Kentucky?

3 years after the claim arose for court or administrative actions under KRS Chapter 337 that have no other specific deadline (KRS 337.385(5), effective July 15, 2024).

What can my employer owe besides my wages in Kentucky?

For unpaid minimum wage or overtime, the employer owes the unpaid amount plus an equal amount as liquidated (double) damages, plus court costs and attorney's fees; the court can reduce the extra if the employer acted in good faith (KRS 337.385(1)-(2)). If the employer used forced labor, at least three times the wages owed (KRS 337.385(3)). The state can also fine employers $100 to $1,000 per violation, and for illegal deductions the employer must repay you with 10% yearly interest (KRS 337.990).

Can my employer fire me for filing a wage claim in Kentucky?

Your employer may not fire or punish you for complaining to your employer or the state that you were not paid minimum wage or overtime, or for starting or testifying in a wage case; the state fines employers $100 to $1,000 for this (KRS 337.990(9)).

Employer still won't pay? Small claims court is often the next step for amounts under the state limit.

Small claims in Kentucky
Sources

Last checked: Oct 2026.

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