Unpaid wages in North Carolina: what the law says

What the statute says

Final pay detail

No fixed number of days. N.C.G.S. § 95-25.7: 'Employees whose employment is discontinued for any reason shall be paid all wages due on or before the next regular payday either through the regular pay channels or by trackable mail if requested by the employee in writing.' The deadline is identical whether the employee was fired or quit — the statute says 'for any reason' and NC DOL's guidance draws no distinction.

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Separate rule for variable pay: 'Wages based on bonuses, commissions or other forms of calculation shall be paid on the first regular payday after the amount becomes calculable when a separation occurs.' Such wages 'may not be forfeited unless the employee has been notified in accordance with G.S. 95-25.13 of the employer's policy or practice which results in forfeiture. Employees not so notified are not subject to such loss or forfeiture.' The 'trackable mail ... in writing' language was added by Session Law 2021-82, s. 6.

Penalty for paying late

None. North Carolina has no California-style per-day waiting-time penalty.

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I reviewed the complete section list of Article 2A of Chapter 95 (the NC Wage and Hour Act) and no section imposes a per-day or waiting-time penalty for late final wages; the civil penalties in §§ 95-25.23, 95-25.23A are for youth-employment and record-keeping violations and are payable to the State, not the employee.

The employee's monetary remedy for late or unpaid final wages is unpaid wages + interest + liquidated damages under § 95-25.22.

State minimum wage

$7.25 / hour

Overtime beyond federal law

No rule stronger than the FLSA. N.C.G.S. § 95-25.4(a): 'Every employer shall pay each employee who works longer than 40 hours in any workweek at a rate of not less than time and one half of the regular rate of pay of the employee for those hours in excess of 40 per week.' There is no North Carolina daily-overtime requirement and no double-time requirement.

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Former subsection (b) was 'Repealed by Session Laws 1991, c. 330, s. 2, effective June 19, 1991.'

Liquidated damages

Yes. Under N.C.G.S. § 95-25.22 an employer who violates the wage provisions is liable for the unpaid wages plus interest at the legal rate, and the court must additionally award liquidated damages in an amount equal to the amount found to be due — except that where the employer shows the violation was in good faith and it had reasonable grounds to believe it was not in violation, the court has discretion to award no liquidated damages or a reduced amount.

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The court may also order costs and 'reasonable attorneys' fees to be paid by the defendant.'

Time limit to sue

2 years

Who handles complaints

North Carolina Department of Labor, Wage and Hour Bureau

Read it yourself

Official sources. If a number below matters to your case, open the statute and read it — laws get amended, and cities often stack stricter local rules on top.

• N.C. Gen. Stat. § 95-25.7 — N.C.G.S. § 95-25.7 — Payment to separated employees; full verbatim text obtained from the official NC General Assembly statutes site, with history line '(1975, c. 413, s. 4; 1979, c. 839, s. 1; 1981, c. 663, s. 1; 1993, c. 214, s. 1; 2021-82, s. 6.)'
• N.C. Gen. Stat. § 95-25.22 (incl. § 95-25.22(f); 2-yr limit via N.C. Gen. Stat. § 1-53) — N.C.G.S. § 95-25.22 — Recovery of unpaid wages: unpaid wages + legal interest, mandatory liquidated damages equal to amount found due (good-faith discretion), attorneys' fees, and 'Actions under this section must be brought within two years pursuant to G.S. 1-53.'
• N.C. Gen. Stat. § 95-25.3(a) — N.C.G.S. § 95-25.3(a) — Minimum wage: 'wages of at least six dollars and fifteen cents ($6.15) per hour or the minimum wage set forth in paragraph 1 of section 6(a) of the Fair Labor Standards Act, 29 U.S.C. 206(a)(1), as that wage may change from time to time, whichever is higher'; history line ends '2017-185, s. 3(b).'
• N.C. Gen. Stat. § 95-25.4 — N.C.G.S. § 95-25.4 — Overtime: time and one half over 40 hours per workweek; subsection (b) repealed effective June 19, 1991; history line ends '2017-185, s. 3(c).'
• N.C. Gen. Stat. ch. 95, art. 2A (§§ 95-25.1 to 95-25.25) — NC Wage and Hour Act, Article 2A of Chapter 95 — complete section list, used to confirm that no section creates a per-day / waiting-time penalty and that § 95-25.4 contains no seasonal-amusement 45-hour overtime provision
• N.C. Dep't of Labor, Minimum Wage in N.C. (official agency guidance) — NC Department of Labor — Minimum Wage in N.C.: 'The minimum wage in North Carolina is currently $7.25 an hour.' and 'an employer MUST pay at least $2.13 an hour to tipped employees as long as each employee receives enough in tips to make up the difference between the wages paid and the minimum wage ($7.25).'
• N.C. Dep't of Labor, Payment of Final Wages to Separated Employees — NC Department of Labor — Payment of Final Wages to Separated Employees (official agency guidance restating § 95-25.7; confirms no fired-vs-quit distinction)
• N.C. Dep't of Labor, Employee Rights Regarding Time Worked and Wages Earned — NC Department of Labor — Employee Rights Regarding Time Worked and Wages Earned: 'In order for the N.C. Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Bureau to assist an employee with a wage dispute, a complaint must be filed.'

Last checked: 2026-08-17