What is the minimum age to work as a youth sports referee in Arkansas?

14 (under 14: parents/family, farm, newspaper, entertainment) YES: A.C.A. 11-6-116 (Act 940 of 2005): minors 11+ may work as sports officials in youth football, baseball, softball, basketball or soccer if an adult representing the athletic program is on premises and the program holds signed parental consent; hour limits (11-6-108, 11-6-110) still apply. Parent-employed exempt (11-6-102). State law keys on 'employ/permit to work' - no 1099 carve-out.

When is a final paycheck due in Arkansas if you let someone go?

Next regular payday (A.C.A. 11-4-405 as amended by Act 853 of 2019; double wages if not paid within 7 days after that payday) Double wages if unpaid 7+ days after the next regular payday (ACA 11-4-405). PTO per policy.

How does Arkansas decide whether a coach or referee is a 1099 contractor or an employee?

Common law / right to control (ADOL uses IRS-type factors)

Does a youth sports league in Arkansas need workers' compensation for 1099 referees and coaches?

Arkansas covers employers with three or more employees and excludes independent contractors. Since Act 1055 of 2019, the Empower Independent Contractors Act (Ark. Code 11-1-204) governs status "for purposes of this title," which includes the WC law (ch. 9) and UI law (ch. 10): the IRS common-law factors in 26 C.F.R. 31.3121(d)-1 (behavioral control, financial control, relationship of the parties) decide. Before that the Commission used a right-to-control test with economic factors. Sole proprietors, partners and LLC members are not employees unless they elect coverage (11-9-102(9)), and those with no employees can obtain a $50 Certificate of Non-Coverage from the Workers' Compensation Commission (Form A, citing 11-9-102(9)(D) and 11-9-402). Statutory employer: a prime contractor is liable for compensation to employees of an uninsured subcontractor (11-9-402(a)); the certificate is the usual way a hirer documents that a sub does not need coverage. Sports officials: no WC or unemployment exclusion found; general tests apply. Bottom line: referees paid per game who run their own officiating business and hold a non-coverage certificate are reasonably safe as contractors. Coaches directed by the league are likely employees under the IRS factors; a league with three or more such workers must insure or faces uninsured-employer exposure.

For youth sports organizations and event operators · Arkansas rulebook

Youth sports labor rules in Arkansas: who can you put in the game, and what do you owe them?

State rules for everyone a youth sports organization pays: coaches and trainers on payroll, officials and event staff on 1099, program and front-office staff, and the teenagers you hire for a season. Wages, final pay, minors, contractor status, workers' comp, safe sport and youth safety, 50 states + DC, checked against statute text.

Last reviewed Oct 1, 202651 jurisdictions · 32 rules each

Step 1

Pick the state where the work happens

Rules follow where people work, not where you are based. Running an event? Use the event state. Operating a club or league? Use the state where your staff coach, officiate and work.

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Set a role, age and pay type below to see which rules apply to your organization.

Step 2

Check a staffing plan

Tell us who you are paying, how old they are, and whether they are on payroll or 1099. We rank what applies.

State where the work happens

Role

Worker age

Paid as

Not sure if someone should be 1099 or on payroll?Answer 5 plain-English questions. We explain the sticking points in your state.5-question check

Tourney Direct does not decide classification. Confirm with a tax advisor or attorney before you onboard anyone as a contractor.

Step 3

Everything on file for Arkansas

All 32 rules for this state, with the statutes and agency pages they came from.

Wages and pay
Minimum wage (2026): $11.00
Required pay frequency: Semi-monthly
Final paycheck if you let them go: Next regular payday (A.C.A. 11-4-405 as amended by Act 853 of 2019; double wages if not paid within 7 days after that payday)
Final paycheck if they quit: Next regular payday
Final-pay penalties: Double wages if unpaid 7+ days after the next regular payday (ACA 11-4-405). PTO per policy.
State income tax withholding: Yes
Workers' comp required at: 3+
New-hire report due (days): 20
Minors
Minimum working age: 14 (under 14: parents/family, farm, newspaper, entertainment)
Work permit: No: Act 195 of 2023 (Youth Hiring Act) eliminated under-16 employment certificate; employer must keep proof of age
Ages 14 to 15, school in session: State: 8 hrs/day, 48 hrs/wk, 6 days; 7pm-6am ban (9pm before non-school day) - FLSA 3/18, 7am-7pm governs
Ages 14 to 15, summer and breaks: State 8/48; FLSA 8/40, 9pm summer governs
Ages 16 to 17: Age 16: max 10 hrs/day, 54 hrs/wk, 6 days; no work 11pm-6am before school day. Age 17: none
Weekend and evening games: 16-yr-olds may work late Fri/Sat (no curfew before non-school day); 17s unrestricted
Referee, coach and recreation exemptions: YES: A.C.A. 11-6-116 (Act 940 of 2005): minors 11+ may work as sports officials in youth football, baseball, softball, basketball or soccer if an adult representing the athletic program is on premises and the program holds signed parental consent; hour limits (11-6-108, 11-6-110) still apply. Parent-employed exempt (11-6-102). State law keys on 'employ/permit to work' - no 1099 carve-out.
Contractors and leave
How this state decides 1099 vs. payroll: Common law / right to control (ADOL uses IRS-type factors)
Same question, for unemployment insurance: IRS common-law factors (26 C.F.R. 31.3121(d)-1), Ark. Code 11-10-210(e) (as amended by Act 1055 of 2019) provides employment status is determined under the Empower Independent Contractors Act, Ark. Code 11-1-204, which mandates the IRS factors. Not an ABC test.
Referee-specific rule: None found (no officials-specific statute; general tests apply)
Workers' comp for 1099 referees and coaches: Arkansas covers employers with three or more employees and excludes independent contractors. Since Act 1055 of 2019, the Empower Independent Contractors Act (Ark. Code 11-1-204) governs status "for purposes of this title," which includes the WC law (ch. 9) and UI law (ch. 10): the IRS common-law factors in 26 C.F.R. 31.3121(d)-1 (behavioral control, financial control, relationship of the parties) decide. Before that the Commission used a right-to-control test with economic factors. Sole proprietors, partners and LLC members are not employees unless they elect coverage (11-9-102(9)), and those with no employees can obtain a $50 Certificate of Non-Coverage from the Workers' Compensation Commission (Form A, citing 11-9-102(9)(D) and 11-9-402). Statutory employer: a prime contractor is liable for compensation to employees of an uninsured subcontractor (11-9-402(a)); the certificate is the usual way a hirer documents that a sub does not need coverage. Sports officials: no WC or unemployment exclusion found; general tests apply. Bottom line: referees paid per game who run their own officiating business and hold a non-coverage certificate are reasonably safe as contractors. Coaches directed by the league are likely employees under the IRS factors; a league with three or more such workers must insure or faces uninsured-employer exposure.
Seasonal or recreation carve-out: Ark. Code 11-4-203(3)(L) excludes employees of a nonprofit recreational/educational camp operating <=7 months/yr; (3)(R) excludes organized camps and religious/nonprofit educational conference centers meeting the 7-month or 33-1/3% receipts test. No general seasonal amusement/recreation or coach exemption.
Paid sick leave: No
Paid family and medical leave: No mandate. Voluntary employer-purchased family leave insurance authorized by Act 84 of 2023 (SB 111, signed 2/17/2023), Ark. Code 23-62-112.
What it costs to get it wrong: No dedicated statute; UI audits
Safety
Background checks: None statewide for private youth leagues, check municipal/league policy (A.C.A. §12-12-1601 et seq. Child Maltreatment Registry checks are permissive for youth orgs). NCPA/VCA channeling via Arkansas State Police.
Safe sport: state law: No state safe-sport (abuse-prevention) statute for private youth leagues; federal SafeSport Act baseline and NGB rules apply. Arkansas does, however, have a coach-training mandate of a different kind: the Coach Safely Act, Act 642 of 2023, A.C.A. 6-18-721 to 6-18-723, requires organizations (public or private) that sponsor or conduct sports training or high-risk youth athletic activities for children 14 and younger to require all coaches and athletics personnel to complete Department of Health-approved training in emergency preparedness, concussion, heat illness, conditioning and equipment, and sudden cardiac death, and to keep completion records. It does not cover abuse prevention, two-adult rules, electronic communication, locker room or travel policies, and imposes no parent information-sheet duty. No Arkansas statute references the U.S. Center for SafeSport Code or the federal SafeSport Act. Hazing (A.C.A. 6-5-201 et seq.) is a school and college offense, not coach-specific. Coaches are not named mandatory reporters and background checks are permissive (see mandatory_reporter_coaches and background_check_youth_sports). No abuse-prevention bill for youth sports organizations was identified in the 2025 or 2026 sessions.
Safe sport: federal SafeSport Act and NGB rules: Nationally, the SafeSport Act (36 U.S.C. 220541-220543, as amended by Pub. L. 116-189 in 2020; no enacted amendments since, the Safer Sports for Athletes Act remains pending) requires USOPC national governing bodies and the amateur sports organizations they sanction or that compete interstate with adults in regular contact with minors to deliver SafeSport Core training, adopt MAAPP-style policies limiting one-on-one adult-minor contact, and report suspected child abuse to law enforcement within 24 hours and to the Center. Arkansas-specific: NGB clubs serving players 14 and under must layer Coach Safely Act injury training on top of SafeSport Core; the federal 24-hour reporting duty is the operative abuse-reporting rule for club coaches since they are not state mandatory reporters. AAA (school) uses NFHS courses.
Concussion law: A.C.A. §6-18-708 / §6-18-710 (2013, expanded 2021), schools AND youth athletic organizations; coaches/officials training every 3 years; RTP clearance by licensed health-care provider.
Sudden cardiac arrest law: Yes (school), A.C.A. §6-18-713: applies to school-sponsored 'athletic activity' (interscholastic, cheer, club sports); cardiac emergency response plans, coach CPR/AED training, annual drills; removal after fainting/LOC; RTP written clearance by licensed physician. Youth leagues: §6-18-713(f) only 'encourages' sponsors of youth athletic activities to follow ADH guidelines. Separate Coach Safely Act, §6-18-721 (2023): associations running high-risk youth sports (athletes ≤14) on state-owned/leased property must have coaches complete an annual safety course that includes heart defects/sudden cardiac death; private-property leagues exempt.
CPR and AED: School coaches CPR/AED (A.C.A. §6-18-708). None for non-school youth coaches.
Coaches as mandated reporters: Not specifically: professionals list, A.C.A. §12-18-402 (school officials/child-care workers; volunteer coaches not named). No SafeSport-style state mandate.
Coach certification: None statewide for non-school coaches.
Assault-on-official law: Yes: A.C.A. §5-13-209 (abuse of athletic contest official).

All states

Rulebook by state

Arkansas at a glance: minimum wage $11.00. Final paycheck when you let someone go: Next regular payday (A.C.A. 11-4-405 as amended by Act 853 of 2019; double wages if not paid within 7 days after that payday). Minimum working age: 14 (under 14: parents/family, farm, newspaper, entertainment). Background checks for youth sports: None statewide for private youth leagues, check municipal/league policy (A.C.A. §12-12-1601 et seq. Child Maltreatment Registry checks are permissive for youth orgs). NCPA/VCA channeling via Arkansas State Police.