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Colorado Labor Laws 2025

Colorado has comprehensive labor protections including mandatory meal and rest breaks, daily overtime after 12 hours, paid sick leave, and wage transparency requirements. Denver has an even higher local minimum wage.

Important: Colorado requires 10-minute paid rest breaks every 4 hours and 30-minute meal breaks for most employees. Denver's minimum wage ($18.81) is significantly higher than the state minimum.

Minimum Wage

Colorado has a state minimum wage that exceeds federal law and adjusts annually for inflation.

Key Requirements

  • State minimum wage: $14.81 per hour (as of January 1, 2025)
  • Tipped employees: $11.79/hour (with tip credit to reach minimum wage)
  • Denver minimum wage: $18.81 per hour (higher local minimum)
  • Annual adjustments based on Consumer Price Index
  • Applies to all employers regardless of size

Additional Resources

Overtime

Colorado follows federal overtime requirements with some additional provisions for specific industries.

Key Requirements

  • Overtime pay: 1.5x regular rate for hours worked over 40 in a workweek
  • Daily overtime: 1.5x for hours over 12 in a day (or 12 consecutive hours)
  • No daily overtime for employees on alternative workweek schedules (with agreement)
  • Double time: 2x for hours over 12 consecutive hours of work
  • Standard exemptions apply (executive, administrative, professional)

Additional Resources

Meal and Rest Breaks

Colorado requires both meal and rest breaks for most employees.

Key Requirements

  • Rest breaks: 10-minute paid break for every 4 hours worked
  • Meal breaks: 30-minute unpaid meal period for shifts over 5 hours
  • Second meal break required for shifts over 10 hours
  • Meal break should start within first 5 hours of shift
  • Employees must be completely relieved of duties during unpaid meal breaks
  • Breaks cannot be combined or taken at beginning/end of shift

Additional Resources

Paid Sick Leave

Colorado requires paid sick leave for all employees under the Healthy Families and Workplaces Act.

Key Requirements

  • Accrual: 1 hour of paid sick leave for every 30 hours worked
  • Employers with 16+ employees: Up to 48 hours per year
  • Employers with fewer than 16 employees: Up to 48 hours, but only first 48 hours are paid
  • Can be used for employee or family member illness, preventive care, or public health emergencies
  • Unused sick leave carries over to the next year (up to 48 hours)

Additional Resources

Wage Transparency

Colorado requires pay transparency in job postings and promotion opportunities.

Key Requirements

  • Job postings must include compensation range and benefits description
  • Applies to all positions that could be performed in Colorado (including remote)
  • Promotion opportunities must be announced to all current employees
  • Employers with remote workers must comply even if not physically located in Colorado
  • Penalties for non-compliance can be significant

Additional Resources

Recordkeeping Requirements

Colorado has specific requirements for maintaining employee records.

Key Requirements

  • Employers must keep records for at least 3 years
  • Records must include hours worked, wages paid, and deductions
  • Pay stubs must be provided with detailed information
  • Employees have right to inspect their own records
  • Must maintain records of job postings and promotion opportunities

Additional Resources

Understanding Colorado's Break Requirements

Colorado has some of the most employee-friendly break requirements in the nation:

Rest Breaks (Paid)

10 minutes for every 4 hours worked (or major fraction). Must be in middle of work period when possible.

Meal Breaks (Unpaid)

30 minutes for shifts over 5 hours. Second meal break required for shifts over 10 hours.

Wage Transparency Requirements

Colorado's Equal Pay for Equal Work Act requires significant transparency:

  • All job postings must include hourly rate or salary range
  • General description of benefits must be included in postings
  • Promotion opportunities must be announced to all current employees
  • Applies to remote positions that could be performed in Colorado

Denver's Higher Minimum Wage

The City and County of Denver has its own minimum wage significantly higher than the state:

Denver Minimum Wage (2025)$18.81/hour
State Minimum Wage (2025)$14.81/hour

Navigate Colorado's Complex Labor Laws

Rightwork automatically enforces Colorado's break requirements, calculates daily overtime, tracks paid sick leave accruals, and applies the correct minimum wage by location.

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