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

14; no age floor for youth sporting events: a minor may serve as referee, coach or other position necessary to the event (not concessions) if all players under 18 and event sponsored/supervised by a public body or nonprofit (RSMo 294.011(7)(d)) Strongest coach/ref carve-out in the country: minors of any age serving as referees, coaches & event-necessary roles at nonprofit/public-body youth events are excluded from 'employment' (RSMo 294.011(7)(d); concession work NOT excluded). State law keys on 'employ/permit to work' - no 1099 carve-out; misclassifying minor officials as contractors does not avoid child-labor rules.

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

Immediately (day of discharge) Penalty: wages continue up to 60 days after written demand (RSMo 290.110). PTO per policy.

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

Common law / right to control (IRS 20-factor; Mo. Rev. Stat. 288.034)

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

Missouri covers every person in the service of an employer under any contract of hire (Mo. Rev. Stat. 287.020.1) and excludes independent contractors under the common-law right-to-control test, with the Division and courts weighing control over the details, method of payment, tools, the right to discharge, and whether the work is part of the regular business. Missouri has an express official exemption: persons providing services as adjudicators, sports officials or contest workers for interscholastic activities programs or similar amateur youth programs, who are not otherwise employed by the sponsoring school, association of schools or nonprofit tax-exempt sponsor, are exempt from WC (287.090.1(5)); the sponsor may elect coverage under 287.090.2. Note the exemption is tied to school and nonprofit sponsors and does not clearly reach for-profit tournament operators. Sole proprietors and partners are not employees and no exemption certificate is needed outside construction. The statutory employer rule in 287.040 makes an entity that contracts out work in the usual course of its business liable for an uninsured contractor's employees. The Act applies only to employers with five or more employees (one in construction). UI: None found for officials; UI uses the IRS 20-factor test (288.034(5)). Bottom line: referees for nonprofit and school leagues are expressly outside WC; coaches are not exempt and are at risk if misclassified, with 285.500 penalties.

For youth sports organizations and event operators · Missouri rulebook

Youth sports labor rules in Missouri: 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 Missouri

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

Wages and pay
Minimum wage (2026): $15.00 (indexed 1/1/2027)
Required pay frequency: Semi-monthly
Final paycheck if you let them go: Immediately (day of discharge)
Final paycheck if they quit: No statute: next regular payday
Final-pay penalties: Penalty: wages continue up to 60 days after written demand (RSMo 290.110). PTO per policy.
State income tax withholding: Yes
Workers' comp required at: 5+ (1+ construction)
New-hire report due (days): 20
Minors
Minimum working age: 14; no age floor for youth sporting events: a minor may serve as referee, coach or other position necessary to the event (not concessions) if all players under 18 and event sponsored/supervised by a public body or nonprofit (RSMo 294.011(7)(d))
Work permit: Yes, under 16 (work certificate issued by school superintendent); age certificate 16+ on request
Ages 14 to 15, school in session: 3 hrs/school day, 40 hrs/wk (state) - FLSA 18/wk governs; 7am-7pm
Ages 14 to 15, summer and breaks: 8 hrs/day, 40 hrs/wk, 6 days; 7am-9pm June 1-Labor Day; 10:30pm at regional fairs
Ages 16 to 17: None: federal has none
Weekend and evening games: No state limits for 16-17; 14-15 8 hrs Sat/Sun
Referee, coach and recreation exemptions: Strongest coach/ref carve-out in the country: minors of any age serving as referees, coaches & event-necessary roles at nonprofit/public-body youth events are excluded from 'employment' (RSMo 294.011(7)(d); concession work NOT excluded). State law keys on 'employ/permit to work' - no 1099 carve-out; misclassifying minor officials as contractors does not avoid child-labor rules.
Contractors and leave
How this state decides 1099 vs. payroll: Common law / right to control (IRS 20-factor; Mo. Rev. Stat. 288.034)
Same question, for unemployment insurance: IRS 20-factor / common law (Mo. Rev. Stat. 288.034(5))
Referee-specific rule: Mo. Rev. Stat. 287.090.1(5): sports officials/adjudicators/contest workers for interscholastic or similar amateur youth programs not otherwise employed by sponsor are exempt from WC
Workers' comp for 1099 referees and coaches: Missouri covers every person in the service of an employer under any contract of hire (Mo. Rev. Stat. 287.020.1) and excludes independent contractors under the common-law right-to-control test, with the Division and courts weighing control over the details, method of payment, tools, the right to discharge, and whether the work is part of the regular business. Missouri has an express official exemption: persons providing services as adjudicators, sports officials or contest workers for interscholastic activities programs or similar amateur youth programs, who are not otherwise employed by the sponsoring school, association of schools or nonprofit tax-exempt sponsor, are exempt from WC (287.090.1(5)); the sponsor may elect coverage under 287.090.2. Note the exemption is tied to school and nonprofit sponsors and does not clearly reach for-profit tournament operators. Sole proprietors and partners are not employees and no exemption certificate is needed outside construction. The statutory employer rule in 287.040 makes an entity that contracts out work in the usual course of its business liable for an uninsured contractor's employees. The Act applies only to employers with five or more employees (one in construction). UI: None found for officials; UI uses the IRS 20-factor test (288.034(5)). Bottom line: referees for nonprofit and school leagues are expressly outside WC; coaches are not exempt and are at risk if misclassified, with 285.500 penalties.
Seasonal or recreation carve-out: Mo. Rev. Stat. 290.500(3)(d) excludes individuals employed <4 months/yr at a resident or day camp for children/youth; 290.505.2 lets amusement/recreation businesses meeting 29 U.S.C. 213(a)(3) pay OT only after 52 hrs/wk, and 290.500(5) lets them treat employees as learners for 90 days.
Paid sick leave: No: Prop A (2024) sick leave REPEALED by HB 567, effective 8/28/2025
Paid family and medical leave: No
What it costs to get it wrong: Mo. Rev. Stat. 285.500-.515: $50–$100/day per misclassified worker (knowing)
Safety
Background checks: None statewide: check municipal/league policy (Mo. Rev. Stat. §43.540 permits 'qualified entity' checks incl. youth sports; Family Care Safety Registry §210.900; NCPA channeling via MSHP).
Safe sport: state law: No state safe-sport statute for private youth leagues; federal SafeSport Act baseline and NGB rules apply. Missouri imposes no abuse-prevention training, written-policy (two-adult, one-on-one contact, electronic communication, locker room, travel) or parent information-sheet duty on private leagues, clubs, camps or tournaments, and no statute adopts the SafeSport Code. Youth-sports-specific mandates are school-side only: the Interscholastic Youth Sports Brain Injury Prevention Act (Mo. Rev. Stat. 167.765, 2011) and the 2026 law creating a five-member Interscholastic Athletic Oversight Commission over MSHSAA eligibility and contest appeals (signed July 2026, hearing appeals from the 2027-28 school year), which has no coach-training or abuse provisions. Coach-relevant criminal law: Mo. Rev. Stat. 566.086 (sexual contact with a student) covers school employees, volunteers and adults supervising extracurricular activities, reaching school coaches but not private-club coaches absent another theory; 578.365 criminalizes hazing. Project Play's 2025 Kansas City analysis found no Missouri coach-training or conduct-policy law for non-school sports; no 2025-26 bill was located (checked Oct. 1, 2026). Cross-reference: the 210.115 catch-all mandated-reporter duty and permissive 43.540 checks are in the existing columns.
Safe sport: federal SafeSport Act and NGB rules: National baseline: the SafeSport Act (36 U.S.C. 220541-43, 18 U.S.C. 2258, Pub. L. 115-126 as amended by Pub. L. 116-189 in 2020, no later amendment found) binds NGBs and their member clubs in interstate competition to SafeSport Core training, MAAPP policies and 24-hour reporting to the Center and law enforcement. Missouri overlay: coaches supervising children fall within the 210.115 "other person with responsibility for the care of children" mandated-reporter catch-all (immediate hotline report to the Children's Division), which is stricter than the federal 24-hour window, so NGB clubs should report immediately to the state and within 24 hours to the Center. MSHSAA rules bind school coaches only; no stricter Missouri club statute exists.
Concussion law: Mo. Rev. Stat. §167.765 / §167.775 (Interscholastic Youth Sports Brain Injury Prevention Act, 2011), school only; RTP written clearance by licensed health-care provider.
Sudden cardiac arrest law: Yes (school), Mo. Rev. Stat. §160.482 (2025): cardiac emergency response plans from 2026-27. Youth leagues not covered.
CPR and AED: None for youth leagues (MSHSAA coaches).
Coaches as mandated reporters: Broad catch-all, Mo. Rev. Stat. §210.115.1 lists professionals plus 'other person with responsibility for the care of children'; coaches are not named but fall within the catch-all when supervising children (volunteers named only for family-crisis community service programs).
Coach certification: None.
Assault-on-official law: No (resolution only; bills pending).

All states

Rulebook by state

Missouri at a glance: minimum wage $15.00 (indexed 1/1/2027). Final paycheck when you let someone go: Immediately (day of discharge). Minimum working age: 14; no age floor for youth sporting events: a minor may serve as referee, coach or other position necessary to the event (not concessions) if all players under 18 and event sponsored/supervised by a public body or nonprofit (RSMo 294.011(7)(d)). Background checks for youth sports: None statewide: check municipal/league policy (Mo. Rev. Stat. §43.540 permits 'qualified entity' checks incl. youth sports; Family Care Safety Registry §210.900; NCPA channeling via MSHP).