Alaska Labor Laws Guide

Overtime exceptions and exemptions in Alaska

The main purpose of overtime laws is to prevent the employers from exploiting their workers. Illegal employer practices are usually regulated by the FLSA.

However, as with minimum wage, certain occupations and industries can have different rules concerning overtime.

It's not arbitrary, however, and the FLSA also provides a series of tests to determine the overtime eligibility.

For example, employers with up to 4 employees are not subject to Alaska overtime rules.

There are 4 main categories of exemption to overtime law, which are not protected by either federal or Alaska regulations. People working in these positions, which commonly require a college diploma, are commonly known as White Collar employees. For a White Collar employee to be exempt from the overtime regulation, there's a condition — one must earn at least $684 per week.

Those are the following types of employees:

• Executive — direct supervision and management of 2 or more employees at a salaried position — mostly positions of business, general, and executive management
• Administrative — salaried, non-manual work related to business operations, management policies, or administrative training — positions of financial officers and analysts, accountants, talent acquisition specialists, budget and marker analysts, etc.
• Professional — salaried positions of advanced knowledge and extensive education, including artists, certified teachers, and skilled computer professionals — positions of architects, software developers, engineers, lawyers, etc.
• Outside sales — salaried and commission-based positions of making sales or taking orders outside of their employer's main workplace — positions of sales representatives who regularly visit potential and existing clients on their premises

Other exceptions from the overtime rule in Alaska

Apart from the 4 categories above and any employees working in a business with less than 4 employees total, there are some other, more specific exceptions from overtime.

And here's what specific laws in Alaska state in regard to employees who do not have to be paid overtime:

• Seamen
• Agricultural workers
• Forestry or lumber workers (in a company with less than 12 employees)
• Employees handling, packing, storing, pasteurizing, drying, preparing, and canning any raw, natural, and agricultural commodities for market, or making cheese, butter, and other dairy products
• Workers in small mining operations employing less than 13 people (provided they don't work more than 56 hours a week or 12 hours a day, not longer than 14 workweeks in any calendar year
• Employees of newspapers with a circulation less than 1,000
• Switchboard operators employed by a public telephone exchange with less than 750 stations
• Public employees handling telegraphic, telephone, and radio messages working under a contract, in cases where the agency revenue doesn't exceed $500 per month
• Outside buyers of eggs, poultry, milk, and cream in their natural or raw state, who visit different locations instead of working in a fixed establishment
• Casual employees, as regulated per the Commission of Labor
• Workers providing medical services
• Employees whose original plan is under a Flexible Work Plan as a part of collective bargaining agreement
• Workers who perform work under a Voluntary Flexible Work plan (if 1. both parties had signed an agreement and filed it with the Labor Department and 2. The Labor Department has issued a certificate approving the plan — 40 hours per week, 10 hours per day, or the overtime rule applies)
• Line haul truck drivers who work on the routes exceeding 100 miles each way, with specific requirements are met for the compensation
• Community health aides employed by the defined terms (AS 18.28.100.) who are employed by local and regional health organizations

Alaska break laws

According to Alaska state law, an employer isn't legally obligated to provide nor allow meal or coffee breaks to employees older than 18.

In case an employer allows such breaks, there are 2 important things to mention.

The first thing goes for breaks of length up to 20 minutes — the employees must be compensated for that period.

However, if the employer offers a possibility of longer breaks, the employees are relieved of their duty during the break. That means they don't have to be compensated for the period of long breaks, as the time doesn't go into their working hours.

Exceptions to break laws in Alaska

As we've mentioned above, the lack of break regulations applies only to adults.

That's not the case for minors, for whom employers are required to provide a 30 minute meal break, after 5 hours of their work.

It's also important to mention that the minor employees don't have to be compensated for the duration of those breaks.

Alaska breastfeeding laws

The state of Alaska doesn't regulate breaks for breastfeeding mothers in the workplace specifically.

That means that the federal laws apply, so mothers are still protected by the FLSA.

The law states that working mothers who are still lactating and breastfeeding must be allowed a reasonable break period to do so. Other than that, employers have to provide a private, enclosed space for this activity. Said space can't be a bathroom.

Alaska leave requirements

Now let's see what happens if an employee needs to take a leave of absence from work.

What are the circumstances when employers must provide that period without an employee's position being endangered?

Are employers required to compensate their employees for the same period?

Here are the answers about required and non-required leave in Alaska.

Alaska required leave

First, let's mention the situations when an employee has the right to take a leave of absence and still be protected by the law:

• Family and medical leave
• Jury duty leave
• Voting time leave
• Witness leave
• Military leave

Family and medical leave

This type of leave is regulated by the Alaska Family Leave Act — FMLA.

In order to be eligible for a job-protected leave, employees must be working at least 1 year in that company, and for at least 1,250 hours.

If that is the case and they qualify for family and medical reasons, their employers must provide up to 12 weeks of leave in a period of 12 months.

Jury duty leave

If an employee is summoned to perform jury duty, they must be allowed to do so, without any negative consequences upon the return to work.

So, employers can't penalize their employees for this reason — but, they can choose not to compensate them for this type of leave.

Voting time leave

The state of Alaska protects all the employees who want to take time off to perform their civic duty of voting.

In case there are at least 2 hours between their shift and the poll opening/closing, they won't have to be compensated.

If not, employers are obligated to provide paid time off.

Witness leave

The law requires employers to provide either paid or unpaid leave for all their employees who are summoned to be a witness in any court.

Military leave

Employers are entitled to this type of leave if their services are needed and they are registered members of:

• Alaska State Defense Force
• Alaska Naval Militia
• Alaska National Guard

Alaska non-required leave

Under the state law of Alaska, employers are not required to offer any of the following:

• Sick leave
• Vacation leave
• Holiday leave
• Bereavement leave

Even though these types of leave are not required, many employers choose to include some or all 4 in their company policy, thereby offering the chosen types of leave to all their employees.

In such instances, employers will dictate all the conditions, as they are allowed to choose, determine, and change the terms and regulations as they see fit.

Child labor laws in Alaska

The term refers to young people under 18 who CAN be employed — but with a different set of rules and regulations for different age groups.

These laws are also referred to as Alaska Child Labor Laws and include young people under 18 — and occasionally under 21, for specific industries involving alcohol, gambling, tobacco, etc.

The most important distinctions between minors and adults working can be found in the following categories:

• Allowed occupations
• Maximum number of hours worked per week
• Breaks

So, for example, even though the cannabis and marijuana industry is a legal sector of employment in Alaska, people under the age of 21 are forbidden to work in any of its branches.

The same goes for the tobacco industry, but with a lower threshold — the youth aged under 19 cannot work in this industry.

And, when it comes to the alcohol industry, minors under the age of 16 ought to have a special license from the Department of Labor and Workforce Development.

Next, let's take a look at some additional rules in the Alaskan labor regulations, based on the specific age of the minors.

Since Alaska is an extremely specific example when it comes to child labor, we'll meticulously cover the laws for different age groups.

Employment for children under 14 years of age in Alaska

Let's start with children under 14 years of age, who are not allowed to work in most jobs.

However, they can be employed in the following 3 categories:

1. Babysitting and other domestic employment in private homes,
2. Newspaper delivery and sales, and
3. Entertainment industry (provided they have an approved permit, issued by the Alaska Age and Hour Administration).

Employment for 14–15-year-olds in Alaska

As soon as the children turn 14, the rules for their employment become less strict.

They can engage in a wider range of work activities, but the rules vary depending on whether school is in session.

If the children aged 14 or 15 are on school break, they are legally allowed to work for 40 hours per week. The only restriction here is that their working hours must be between 5 a.m. and 9 p.m.

However, the situation is different during the school year.

The working hours range stays the same — but the total of weekly hours is limited to 23 per week.

Prohibited for the age group of 14–15 year-olds in Alaska

On top of the above-mentioned restrictions, certain professions and industries are completely forbidden for this age category:

• Manufacturing, mining, processing
• Any occupation requiring the operation of power-driven machinery (office machinery is excluded)
• Any occupation in construction except office work (including demolition and repair)
• Public messenger service
• Any occupation in or about canneries (office work is excluded)
• Any work performed in or about engine rooms, boilers, and retorts
• Any work that's involved with maintenance/repair of the establishment's machines and equipment
• Any occupation that involves working from ladders, scaffolding, windowsills (or a similar substitute)
• Any occupation that involves handling and operating power-driven food slicers, choppers, cutters, grinders, and bakery-type mixers
• Any work in freezers and meat coolers, or related to preparation of meat for sale
• Loading and unloading to or from trucks, conveyors, and railroad cars
• Any occupation in warehousing and storages (office work is excluded)
• Any occupation involving use of sharpened tools
• Any occupation in transportation of people and property (office and sales work is excluded)

Employment of minors under 17 in Alaska

There are various restrictions in relation to this age category, so let's break them down in a comprehensive list.

Certain professions and industries are completely forbidden for minors under the age of 17:

• Any occupation in manufacturing, use, or any kind of handling of explosives
• Any occupation that requires handling motor vehicles
• Any occupation or position in mining operations including coal
• Logging or other occupations in the operation of sawmills, lathe mills, shingle mills, and cooperage
• Any operation of power-driven machinery in woodworking
• Any occupation with exposure to radioactive substances and ionizing radiation
• Any operations involving elevators and other power-driven hoisting apparatus
• Any operations involving power-driven metal forming, punching, and shearing machines
• Any occupations in regard to slaughtering, meat processing, packing, and rendering
• Any occupation involving the operation and cleaning of power-driven paper product machinery
• Any occupation involving manufacturing of bricks, tiles, and kindred products
• Any occupation involving the operation and cleaning of circular saws, guillotine shears, and band saws
• Any occupation involved in wrecking, shipwrecking, and demolition 
• Any occupation involving roofing operations
• Any occupation involving excavation operations
• Any electrical work with voltages exceeding 220, outside erection, repair, and meter testing (including telephone lines and telegraph)
• Any occupation involving exposure to blood-borne pathogens
• Any occupation involving canvassing, solicitation, and peddling of door-to-door contributions, along with acting as outside salespeople in general