• Labor law in Texas is overseen by Work Force Texas.scaffolding workers image by Greg Pickens from Fotolia.com
  
  Labor laws for hourly employees in Texas govern the rules by which employers pay wages to employees and other laws such as the employment of child workers. These laws provide resources for workers that have not been paid wages for work performed and maintain agencies devoted to holding employers accountable.
  
  

Payday Rules

• An employer is required to pay an hourly employee his complete wages for the pre-determined pay period in an acceptable form of payment such as a paycheck. Employees who do not receive the wages that are owed to them or have the wages returned through a bounced check or failed direct deposit may file a complaint with the Texas Workforce Commission.
  
  

Minor Workers

• A child who is 14 or 15 years old may not work more than eight hours per day and not more than 48 hours a week. When a child of that age is enrolled in a public or private school he may not work from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. on a day that follows a school day, or from midnight to 5 a.m. on a day that is not followed by a school day. A child enrolled at school may not work during school hours or more than three hours a day and 18 hours per week during the school year. According to the website for the Texas Legislature, minor workers 16 or 17 years old have no restrictions on hours available for work.
  
  

Minimum Wage Law

• As of 2009, the minimum wage for hourly workers in the state of Texas was $7.25 an hour. Employers are permitted to pay a lower hourly wage to tipped workers, such as bartenders and servers who receive a significant portion of income from cash payments. Employers are not prohibited from bargaining with employers for a higher hourly wage, though no employer can pay you lower than the established minimum.
  
  

Overtime Rules

• Employers must pay workers an overtime wage for all hours worked over eight on a given workday and for hours exceeding 40 in a given work week. The pay rate for overtime is equal to time plus one-half of the employee's normal hourly wage. For example, if the employee's normal hourly wage were $10 per hour his overtime wage would be $15 per hour.