The Ultimate Guide to Minnesota Employment Law

A comprehensive guide to the laws that protect employees in Minnesota workplaces.

Read on to find out what your rights are as a worker in Minnesota.

Know your rights as a worker in Minnesota

Employees in Minnesota have many rights under both state (Minnesota) and federal (U.S.) law. Those laws protect workers against unfair treatment and allow them to sue when their rights are violated. This guide is for Minnesota employees who want to learn more about their rights in the workplace.

Can my employer really do that: First look to the at-will employment doctrine

Like almost every state in the country (Montana being the lone exception), Minnesota is an at-will employment state. That means that most workers do not have a set term of employment, and that either the employee or the employer can end the relationship for almost any reason at all. The simplest way to put this is that employees can be fired for a good reason, a bad reason, or no reason at all. Similarly, employers can hire, demote, reassign, promote, and compensate employees how they see fit, for almost any reason.

Most of the work of labor and employment law is identifying and pursuing cases based on exceptions to the at-will doctrine. Some basic exceptions are situations in which workers and employers enter into a contract that gives the employee the right to their jobs unless there is “good cause” for termination. Most of the time, such contracts come in the form of collective bargaining agreements between unions and employers. These situations are usually governed by labor law, and require the assistance of a good labor lawyer who works for or with unions, as opposed to an employment lawyer. Some individual employees also have employment contracts that guarantee them more job protections than the at-will employment doctrine does. In those situations an employment lawyer can help to understand and protect your rights.

Most employees don’t have many contractual rights that create exceptions to the at-will employment doctrine though. This article is mostly about the other kinds of exceptions, which are found in state and federal statutes. Because while employers in Minnesota can fire employees for almost any reason, state and federal law do protect employees from certain types of actions that are taken for discriminatory or retaliatory reasons. The law also grants employees certain protections in their workplace. These exceptions to the at-will doctrine are the foundation of employment law.

Who you are in the workplace: Understand your protections under anti-discrimination laws

Employers can treat workers differently for good reasons, bad reasons, or no reasons, but state and federal laws prohibit them from treating workers differently for discriminatory reasons. There are several anti-discrimination laws that apply to Minnesota workers. They prohibit employers from making decisions about hiring, firing, promotion, assignment, compensation, and other employment actions for discriminatory reasons. They also prohibit harassment on the basis of certain protected characteristics. The following anti-discrimination laws protect Minnesota workers:

• The Minnesota Human Rights Act prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, creed, religion, national origin, sex, gender identity, marital status, status with regard to public assistance, familial status, disability, sexual orientation, or age. In the 2023-24 legislative session, the legislature amended the MHRA to expand disability protections, improve the monetary damages available to workers (increase the money you could receive if you win your case), and prohibit race discrimination based on hairstyles.
• Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 is the federal law that prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, or national origin. It provides similar protections as the Minnesota Human Rights Act, but only if the employer has 15 or more employees.
• Section 1981 prohibits racial discrimination in non-governmental employment settings. Although this is similar to Title VII and the MHRA, Section 1981 is not enforced by any government agencies and in some cases allows workers to seek more damages.
• The Americans with Disabilities Act prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability or perceived disabilities with non-governmental, and state and local government workplaces.
• The Rehabilitation Act prohibits disability discrimination against federal workers.
• The federal Equal Pay Act prohibits pay disparities based on gender. The Minnesota Equal Pay for Equal Work creates a similar prohibition under state law. Minnesota also prohibits pay history inquiries in an effort to combat discrimination in compensation.
• The federal Pregnancy Discrimination Act prohibits discrimination against pregnant workers. The Minnesota Human Rights Act defines pregnancy discrimination as being a form of sex discrimination.
• The Age Discrimination in Employment Act prohibits discrimination against workers who are older than 40 because of their age.
• The Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act prohibits discrimination against active and reserve military personnel.

How you bring up wrongdoing in the workplace: Protections under anti-retaliation laws

 State and federal laws also prohibit retaliation for certain forms of protected activities. Protected activities or protected conduct include reporting or raising concerns about unlawful activity within the workplace. Depending on the applicable law, protected conduct can include internal reports in opposition to activities or behaviors in the workplace, reports to government agencies, participation in or support of an investigation into wrongdoing, reports to regulators or licensing agencies, or reports to law enforcement. Anti-retaliation laws make it illegal for employers to punish employees for engaging in those protected activities. These laws cover many forms of protected activity, including:

• The Minnesota Human Rights Act prohibits retaliation or reprisals against employees who oppose discriminatory practices or participating in a legal proceeding related to a discrimination case. This includes reporting harassment or discrimination to human resources or a supervisor, objecting to a manager’s discriminatory conduct, reporting discrimination to the government, testifying in support of somebody who has reported discrimination, or filing a discrimination lawsuit.
• Title VII, the ADA, the ADEA, and the Rehabilitation Act all prohibit retaliation against employees who oppose discriminatory practices or participate in related proceedings under those laws.
• The Minnesota Whistleblower Act prohibits retaliation against employees who report or oppose unlawful activity, both before and after it takes place. The legislature and the courts have expanded the protections of the MWA over time so that it protects employees in a wide range of cases when they report suspected wrongdoing.
• The First Amendment of the United States Constitution prohibits retaliation against government employees for exercising their right to free speech. This does not protect government employees for all of their statements, but it does protect those who speak out on matters of public interest outside of work.
• The United States False Claims Act and Minnesota False Claims Act prohibit retaliation against employees who report potential fraud against the federal or state government, respectively.
• Minnesota prohibits retaliation against employees who file for workers’ compensation benefits due to a workplace injury.
• Federal and state law both prohibit retaliation against employees who report employers for failing to pay minimum wage or overtime, or who raise concerns about other violations of wage and hour laws.
• Publicly-traded companies are prohibited from retaliating against employees who report concerns about fraud and other financial malfeasance.
• Federal law prohibits retaliation in a wide range of specific industries under a number of laws.

Each of these laws is distinct and covers different types of protected activities. Some require that the employee report their concerns to the government, while others protect internal reports. Some protect against any form of retaliation, while others require severe consequences such as termination. Each of these laws is designed to protect employees who do the right thing by taking action to prevent unlawful activity.

The key thing to remember is that the law does not prohibit all forms of retaliation. Your boss can retaliate against you for cheering for the wrong sports team, or for complaining to a manager about their leadership style. These anti-retaliation statutes only apply when the activity you are raising concerns about is protected by one of these laws. When it is, you are protected against retaliation.

Accommodations and Leave: Options when you need to adjust your work assignment

Minnesota workers also have protections when health or other issues require modifications to their work assignments. One category of those protections are accommodations, and another is protected leave. These categories overlap, but the laws that govern them are usually distinct.

Employers must accommodate employees in several circumstances. The most common is when an employee has a disability. State and federal law require employers to provide reasonable accommodations to disabled employees. Reasonable accommodations could include modifying work schedules to allow a diabetic employee to take appropriate meal breaks, using larger print to aid a visually-impaired employee, or stationing an employee with a wheelchair on the first floor of the office. When a disabled employee needs an accommodation, they can request one, which triggers an employer’s obligation to work with the employee to identify a reasonable accommodation that allows them to do their job. Employers can decline to provide the exact accommodation requested by the employee, particularly if granting it would cause an undue hardship, such as significant added expenses or untenable disruptions to business.

State and federal law also require employers to accommodate pregnant workers. Such accommodations can include allowing more frequent breaks, offering the ability to sit instead of stand, and implementing lifting restrictions. Minnesota recently strengthened its pregnancy accommodations statute. Congress also recently adopted stronger protections for pregnant workers.

Employers must also accommodate employees’ religious practices under federal law. Such accommodations can include modifications in scheduling to permit time to worship or pray. The U.S. Supreme Court recently clarified that employers must show that such accommodations would cause more than just minor inconveniences if they want to deny requests for them.

Protected job leave is another accommodation that is often required under state and federal law. In addition to the accommodations laws discussed above, state and federal law provide additional protections for employees who need to take leave. The federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) requires employers with more than 50 employees to let workers take up to 12 weeks of leave per year without interference or retaliation. This law ensures that workers can take leave to care for or bond with a new child, take time off because of their own serious health condition, or care for a relative with a serious health condition. If an employee qualifies for leave under the FMLA, employers cannot deny requested leave, interfere with an employee’s use of leave, retaliate against an employee for requesting or taking leave, or refuse to reinstate an employee who took leave to their position. To qualify for leave, an employee must have worked at least 1,250 hours in the past year and worked for the employer for at least 12 months.

Minnesota law provides for 12 weeks of protected leave for new parents and pregnant employees. That law applies to all workers from their first day of employment, regardless of the size of the employer. As of January 1, 2024, Minnesota employers must also allow employees to earn paid sick and safe time that they can use to take paid leave when they are sick, caring for a sick family member, or seeking protection from domestic violence. In 2026, Minnesota will also begin providing paid family and medical leave to all workers, and forbid retaliation against employees who take it.

Finally, Minnesota law also has laws that provide procedural protections for employers related to drug testing. Employers must follow strict rules regarding drug and alcohol testing before taking any negative employment actions against workers for using those substances. As of 2023, most employers are also prohibited from using a positive result for marijuana usage to justify taking any negative actions against workers.

Getting paid: Wage and hour Laws protect your right to a fair wage

A number of laws ensure that Minnesota workers get paid a fair wage. The most widely known and applied wage and hour laws are guarantees for a minimum wage and overtime pay. Federal law sets a minimum hourly wage of $7.25 and requires time-and-a-half wages for working more than 40 hours in a week. Minnesota has a higher minimum wage of $10.85 but also a higher overtime threshold of 48 hours per week. In 2024, the Minnesota legislature eliminated some exceptions to the minimum wage law that permitted lower wages for employees of certain kinds of businesses, and also increased the required annual increase. Both federal and state law have complex rules that exempt certain types of employees from minimum wage and overtime requirements. They also have varying requirements for the types of compensation that are considered when calculating earned wages and required wages.

For most other protections related to the payment of wages, employees must look to Minnesota law. State law includes a number of provisions regarding wages that impact workers around the state:

• Minnesota is one of the only states that prohibits mandatory “tip pooling” and instead requires that the direct service worker whose work generated the tips gets sole possession of their tips, except under a handful of exceptional circumstances.
• Minnesota employers also cannot count tips toward payment of the minimum wage.
• Minnesota also requires that service charges go to direct service workers unless customers are given written notice that they will be directed elsewhere.
• Minnesota law gives workers a substantive right to the wages they earn, which has been interpreted to mean that they must be paid their promised wage for all the hours that they work.
• As of 2024, employees can sue their employers if they are misclassified as an independent contractor.
• Workers have a right to receive their final paychecks within a set period of time after resignation or termination.
• Commissioned salespeople who work as independent contractors have a right to prompt payment of the commissions they earn, including those earned after the last day of their employment or contract.
• Employers cannot deduct from a worker’s wages because of performance issues like faulty workmanship, loss, theft, or damage.
• Workers must be given breaks during the course of their shifts.

In addition to these rules for the payment of employees, some employees also have contracts with their employers that govern how they get paid. Those contracts may contain additional requirements, such as payment of benefits, stock options, bonuses, or commissions. When an employer fails to meet its obligations under a contract, employees have legal rights to seek to enforce those obligations.

Similarly, some employers ask employees to sign non-compete agreements as a condition of employment or compensation. Minnesota banned new non-compete agreements in 2023, but agreements entered into prior to the law are enforceable.

Questions? Contact us

Minnesota workers have robust legal protections to ensure they are treated fairly: employees have the right to be free from discrimination and retaliation, take leave for family and medical needs, receive accommodations for their disabilities, and receive fair wages for their work. When employers violate these rights, employees can take legal action to achieve fair compensation and accountability. If you are a Minnesota worker experiencing mistreatment in the workplace, contact MacDonald Hoague & Bayless’ Minneapolis Office at 612.349.2720 to speak to an attorney about your situation.