AbsentEase
Arkansas sick leave law & call-off rules
Arkansas requires no sick leave and no breaks — but it hides two rules with real teeth: a fired employee's wages left unpaid more than 7 days past the next payday double automatically, and election day carries an affirmative duty to schedule every employee a window to vote. Here is what applies in 2026.
Arkansas at a glance
| Paid sick leave mandate | None — local mandates preempted (Act 643 of 2017) |
|---|---|
| Employment relationship | At-will with a public-policy exception (Sterling Drug v. Oxford) |
| Final paycheck (fired) | Next regular payday — unpaid 7+ days past it, wages DOUBLE |
| Election day | Affirmative duty to schedule work so every employee can vote |
| PTO payout at termination | Policy controls |
| Jury duty | Unpaid, protected — no forced PTO use |
| Meal & rest breaks | None for adults |
Is paid sick leave required in Arkansas?
No. Arkansas has no sick leave requirement, and Act 643 of 2017 preempts local governments from imposing employment-benefit standards above state or federal law. Your written policy and the federal floor are the framework.
The federal floor that still applies
FMLA
Employers with 50+ employees within 75 miles must give eligible employees (12+ months tenure, 1,250+ hours in the past year) up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave for a serious health condition — their own or a close family member's. FMLA-protected absences can't accrue attendance points, and a call-off that mentions an ongoing condition can be notice enough to trigger your FMLA obligations, even if the employee never says "FMLA."
ADA
For employers with 15+ employees, the ADA can require modified attendance expectations or unpaid leave as a reasonable accommodation for a disability. An attendance policy applied "no exceptions" is exactly the kind that loses ADA cases — build an accommodation carve-out into the policy itself.
FLSA overtime and attendance bonuses
A cash bonus promised in advance for good attendance counts as wages under federal overtime law. It has to be added into the regular rate for the weeks it covers, so any of those weeks over 40 hours owes extra overtime on the bonus, usually recalculated after the bonus is paid. State overtime law can add to this, but can't go below it. See how attendance bonuses change overtime pay.
Call-offs, no-call no-shows, and firing in Arkansas
Arkansas is at-will with a genuine public-policy exception (Sterling Drug v. Oxford), so attendance terminations that brush against protected activity — a workers' comp claim, a refusal to break the law — carry tort risk that pure at-will states don't. Otherwise the policy-is-the-law pattern applies, with one scheduling wrinkle: on election day, a rigid crew schedule that leaves someone no window to vote violates Ark. Code 7-1-102 on its own. Wage claims under $2,000 go to the state Labor Standards Division; everything else goes to court on the strength of your records. A call-off hotline or text-based call-off system keeps the absence history that both venues will ask for.
After a no call, no show termination in Arkansas
| Does Arkansas law define job abandonment? | No statute or regulation defines job abandonment; it is set by employer policy. (Ark. Code Ann. § 11-10-513(a)(1); § 11-10-514(a)(1)-(2)) |
|---|---|
| Final paycheck if you treat it as a discharge | An employer that discharges an employee must pay all wages due by the next regular payday; if payment is not made within seven days of that payday, the employer owes the employee double the wages due (Ark. Code § 11-4-405(b)). (Ark. Code Ann. § 11-4-405(a); penalty § 11-4-405(b)) |
| Final paycheck if you treat it as a resignation | No state deadline statute; wages are due on the next regular payday under general wage-payment rules. Section 11-4-405 applies only to discharged employees, and no Arkansas statute sets a separate deadline for an employee who resigns, with or without notice. (None for resignations (Ark. Code Ann. § 11-4-405 covers discharge only)) |
| Accrued PTO at separation | No state requirement; owed only if your written policy promises it. No Arkansas statute requires payout of accrued vacation or PTO; the Arkansas Department of Labor and Licensing's wage-claim page says vacation-pay claims must be supported by a copy of the company policy, so payout depends on what the employer's policy promises. (None (no Arkansas statute); Arkansas Department of Labor and Licensing, Labor Standards Wage Claims page) |
| Unemployment claims | Ark. Code § 11-10-513(a)(1) disqualifies a claimant who voluntarily and without good cause connected with the work left the last work; § 11-10-514(a)(1) disqualifies a claimant discharged for misconduct, and § 11-10-514(a)(2) provides that a discharge for absenteeism is misconduct if made pursuant to the terms of a bona fide written attendance policy, whether fault or no-fault. |
If a state agency later treats a "resignation" as a discharge, the discharge deadline governs, so pay by the earlier of the two when in doubt. Document each step with the no call, no show write-up and termination letter templates, which fill in Arkansas's final-pay rule.
Write a no call, no show policy that fits Arkansas
Start from our no call, no show policy guide and free template, or let the generator turn nine quick questions into a signature-ready policy with Arkansas already selected so the protected-leave section covers the federal FMLA and ADA rules that still apply here.
PTO payout and final paychecks
| Scenario | Rule | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Employee is fired or laid off | Wages due by the next regular payday; unpaid more than 7 days past that payday, the amount doubles | Ark. Code 11-4-405 |
| Employee quits | No statutory deadline — next regular payday by practice | — |
| Unused vacation / PTO | Owed only if promised by policy or contract | Policy/contract law |
| Small wage claims | The state Labor Standards Division investigates claims of $2,000 or less; larger claims go to court | — |
The doubling provision turns a missed final check into the most expensive payroll error in the region — treat discharge pay as a deadline, not a cycle. See how PTO accrual works.
Leave Arkansas employers must (and must not) provide
| Leave type | Required? | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Voting | Yes — scheduling duty | Work hours on election day must be scheduled so each employee has the opportunity to vote (Ark. Code 7-1-102); unpaid; fines for noncompliance |
| Jury duty | Yes — unpaid | No discipline, discharge, or forced leave use (Ark. Code 16-31-106) |
| Military | Yes | USERRA (federal) plus Arkansas National Guard protections |
| Sick leave | No | Whatever your written policy provides |
| Meal & rest breaks | No | None for adults |
The Arkansas employer's attendance playbook
- Put it in writing. A written policy — call-off deadline and channel, points or steps, the no-call no-show rule, and carve-outs for legally protected absences — is what makes discipline defensible. Our attendance policy guide walks through it.
- Give call-offs one channel. "Tell whoever answers" is how records get lost. One number every employee texts or calls makes the record automatic.
- Log everything with timestamps. Unemployment hearings and discrimination charges are won on contemporaneous records, not recollections.
- Enforce consistently. Uneven enforcement converts a lawful termination into a discrimination claim.
- Screen call-offs for protected reasons before applying points — sickness that could be FMLA/ADA territory gets a different track than an overslept alarm.
Comparing states? See all published guides on the state sick leave laws hub.