Pennsylvania: Pay Frequency and Wage-Payment Lag Requirements

Requirements one by one

Pennsylvania regulates lag, not one universal frequency

Section 260.3(a) requires regular paydays designated in advance, but it does
not choose weekly, biweekly, semimonthly, or monthly payroll for every employer.
Instead, it controls how long wages may remain unpaid after the employer's pay
period closes. A written employment contract may state the lag. If it does not,
the standard customary lag in the trade applies; if neither source supplies a
time, wages are due within 15 days after the period ends.

For example, if an employer uses a two-week pay period and neither the written
employment terms nor a provable trade custom supplies another lag, the payday
must fall no later than 15 days after that two-week period closes. The statute
does not turn the 15 days into permission to add another 15 days after a
separately promised payday.

Overtime may follow one payroll later

The same subsection says overtime wages may be treated as earned and payable in
the next succeeding pay period. That is a narrow timing allowance for overtime,
not a general extension for all straight-time wages earned in the period.

Hiring and change notice

Section 260.4 requires notice at hiring of the time and place of payment, pay
rate, and promised fringe benefits or wage supplements, plus notice of a change
before it occurs. The employer may instead keep those facts conspicuously
posted. An available bona fide collective-bargaining agreement containing the
terms also satisfies the notice duty.

Enforcement and penalties

An employee or group may sue under § 260.9a, or may report the wage claim to the
Secretary of Labor and Industry. If the employer does not pay or satisfactorily
explain the claim within 10 days after certified agency notice, a 10% penalty
attaches to the portion found justly due. A prevailing plaintiff receives
reasonable attorney's fees, and the claim has a three-year limitations period.

If wages remain unpaid 30 days beyond the regular payday and no good-faith
dispute accounts for nonpayment, § 260.10 adds liquidated damages equal to 25%
of the wages or $500, whichever is greater. Section 260.11.1 separately makes a
violation a summary offense carrying up to a $300 fine, up to 90 days'
imprisonment, or both.

What trips people up

The 15-day rule is a default lag, not Pennsylvania's pay frequency. The statute
allows a written employment contract or customary trade practice to supply the
number of days after period close, while still requiring regular paydays and
preserving the Act's nonwaivable protections.

Notice may be individual, posted, or supplied through an available collective-
bargaining agreement. But whichever route the employer uses must communicate
the time and place of payment, and a change must be communicated before it
takes effect.

Final pay after a separation has its own next-regular-payday rule in § 260.5.
That provision should not be substituted for the recurring-pay rule in § 260.3.

Common questions

Does Pennsylvania require biweekly pay?

No. The statute requires regular paydays but does not mandate one universal
weekly or biweekly frequency. The pay-period lag must satisfy § 260.3(a).

What happens if the contract says nothing about payroll lag?

The customary trade lag applies if one exists; otherwise wages are due within
15 days after the pay period ends.

Must employees receive notice before payday changes?

Yes. Section 260.4 requires notice of a change before it occurs, although the
employer may satisfy the overall notice duty through conspicuous posting or an
available bona fide collective-bargaining agreement.

Statutes and sources

• 43 P.S. § 260.2.1. Employer and wage definitions. Official act PDF
  (accessed July 12, 2026).
• 43 P.S. § 260.3(a). Regular paydays, contract/custom/default lag, and
  overtime timing. Official act PDF
  (accessed July 12, 2026).
• 43 P.S. § 260.4. Hiring and change notice. Official act PDF
  (accessed July 12, 2026).
• 43 P.S. §§ 260.7, 260.12. Nonwaiver and preservation of different wage-
  payment standards. Official act PDF
  (accessed July 12, 2026).
• 43 P.S. §§ 260.9a-.11.1. Civil action, agency claim, fees, liquidated
  damages, limitations, and criminal penalty. Official act PDF
  (accessed July 12, 2026).
• HB 716, SB 341, and HB 718 (2025-2026). Pending notice and enforcement
  proposals. HB 716,
  SB 341, and
  HB 718 (checked July
  25, 2026).