Many young people starting their first jobs are often unaware of what they are entitled to when it comes to fair work, and many older Nebraskans are in the dark as well. In a 2020 study by Oxfam, a global organization that works to both shed light on and fight inequality, Nebraska ranked 26th out of the 50 states – as well as Puerto Rico and Washington DC – when it came to wage policies, worker protections, and right to organize. For context, the #1 state was California, while North Carolina ranked 52nd. It is important that workers in Nebraska know what their rights are, so below is a brief overview of the Nebraska Labor Laws, so that you are able to defend your rights and know what you can and cannot expect from your employer.

First and foremost, Nebraska is an At-Will Employment State. This means, as long as no crime is committed, either the employer can fire the employee, or the employee can quit with no reason given. With the passing of LB 451 in 2021; which Daily Record readers might remember was fought for by the nonprofit I Be Black Girl, the state makes it clear that no employee can be terminated for reasons of hair texture/hairstyle historically associated with race and/or culture. 2021 also saw the passing of LB 260, which gave more reasons that employees could use for leaving their job with ‘good cause’, which allows said employees to be entitled to unemployment benefits. These reasons are:

• If the person is forced to leave to escape abuse at the workplace or at home
• They have a non-employment related illness or injury that prevents them from working without undue risk of harm
• They are forced to move due to their spouse’s employment or military duty
• They were being required to move for their employment and were not able to
• If the employee is a construction worker, they are leaving their work to accept a previously secured job
• They accepted a voluntary layoff to avoid a coworker
• They were asked to perform an illegal act
• They experienced discrimination due to race, sex, or age
• They felt unsafe at their place of work
• They left to attend school
• They are caring for a family member with a serious health condition

 As of January 2023, minimum wage in the state has become $10.50, which is the average in terms of the country. Any jobs that offer tips, such as restaurant jobs, can be paid $2.13, as long as the amount of tips they receive brings them to at least the state’s minimum wage.

When it comes to your wages, your employer cannot deduct money from it for lost or broken items unless they have a written agreement from the employee, and they cannot deduct from it if that would bring you below minimum wage. They can, however, change your schedule without notice or reduce your hourly wage with only notice before you next work. Employers can also alter when your payday is with a minimum of 30 days written notice.

For your final paycheck, the state requires companies to pay their former employees on the next regular payday or within two weeks of termination, whichever comes sooner.

In terms of breaks in Nebraska, while it is required for assembly plants, mechanics, and workshops to give their people 30-minute lunch periods for every shift they work that is at least eight hours, other businesses are not held to that same standard. It is required by federal law that, if a business gives their employee a break lasting less than 20 minutes, they pay the employee for that time. Generally, lunch breaks are not required to be paid by any company you work for. Nebraska law also requires that companies offer a clean space and reasonable time for those who are breastfeeding to be able to pump.

Nebraska sets the minimum age to work at 14. Once you hit 16, there are less restrictions against what work you are allowed to do and when, with only jobs described as hazardous that are still regulated. Hazardous jobs, as defined by Nebraska, include:

Manufacturing or storing explosives

Operating motor vehicles

Coal mining

Operating power-driven machinery

Logging and saw milling

Roofing

For kids aged 14-15, you are not allowed to work more than eight hours a day or 48 hours a week. You cannot work before 6am or after 10pm.

In Nebraska, there is no state law requiring any kind of parental leave. Any company that does give that kind of leave has to do the same for biological and adoptive children.

With jury duty, all employers are required to allow their workers time for jury duty. They cannot try to persuade them to avoid service in any way, or to punish a worker for having to be away from the office because of it. They also cannot require the employee to use any of their vacation or sick leave time to cover for their being away. They still have to pay the employee for their time away while on jury duty, minus what they were paid by the court.

On election days, companies have to make sure that all employees have the time to go vote. All employees are entitled to two hours to go vote, and schedulers will make sure that between the opening and closing of the polls that they are able to make it to a polling place.

Another thing that Nebraska does not require is paid vacation or sick leave from private employers. However, under the Family Medical Leave Act, employees can take unpaid leave for family and medical reasons while still keeping their health insurance, and are entitled to 12 workweeks of leave in a 12 month period for the birth of a child or to care for a newborn under one year of age; the placement of a child for adoption or foster care; to care for a child, spouse, or parent with serious health problems; to deal with their own serious health condition that keeps them from being able to work. State employers, however, are required to offer 96 working hours of vacation with full pay.

A doctor’s note does not entitle an employee to be absent from work. Employers are not in any way obligated to honor a doctor’s note unless it is attached to a formal Family Medical Leave request or as part of a documented disability or Worker’s Compensation claim.

Nebraska does not require any additional immigrant verification beyond Federal I-9 compliance. 

For drug testing, Nebraska does allow for testing as part of the job application process, but unless the testing satisfies the standards of Nebraska Revised Statute 48-1903. Employers are not allowed to release the results of a drug test to the public.

If you are injured while on the job, or suffer an occupational disease, you can apply for Worker’s Compensation. The injury must be immediately reported to the employer or risk being denied benefits. In Nebraska specifically, the Nebraska Workers’ Compensation Act also protects against retaliation from employers for the injured person filing. If the company discriminated against someone who files for Worker’s Comp., the employer will be forced to pay a fine to the Second Injury Trust Fund.

Speaking of discrimination, the Nebraska Fair Employment Practice Act prohibits retaliation against whistleblowers who report unlawful practices against their employer.

When it comes to guns, the state allows employers to prohibit their employees from carrying on the premises. Even if they have a permit for concealed carry, it is the employer’s discretion whether they are allowed to have a gun on them, or even in their car in the company’s parking lot, while working.

If you would like to learn more about Nebraska’s labor laws, you can go to dol.nebraska.gov/laborstandards.