Minnesota legislation · 94th Legislature 2025-2026
Minnesota SF5277: Definition of employee modification under the Minnesota Fair Labor Standards Act and whistleblower protections to explicitly include incarcerated people
Status: In committee, May 11, 2026
What the bill says
A bill for an act relating to corrections; modifying the definition of employee under the Minnesota Fair Labor Standards Act and whistleblower protections to explicitly include incarcerated people; modifying the Public Employee Labor Relations Act and the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1973 to include incarcerated persons; reclassifying inmates in state correctional institutions as employees; requiring a report; amending Minnesota Statutes 2024, sections 177.23, subdivision 7; 179A.03, subdivision 14; 181.931, subdivision 2; 182.651, subdivision 9; 241.27, subdivision 1; 243.23…
From the introduced text, May 8, 2026:
A bill for an act relating to corrections; modifying the definition of employee under the Minnesota Fair Labor Standards Act and whistleblower protections to explicitly include incarcerated people; modifying the Public Employee Labor Relations Act and the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1973 to include incarcerated persons; reclassifying inmates in state correctional institutions as employees; requiring a report; amending Minnesota Statutes 2024, sections 177.23, subdivision 7; 179A.03, subdivision 14; 181.931, subdivision 2; 182.651, subdivision 9; 241.27, subdivision 1; 243.23; 243.88, subdivision 2; 363A.03, subdivision 15. Section 1. Minnesota Statutes 2024, section 177.23, subdivision 7, is amended to read: Subd. 7. Employee. new text begin [ADDED: (a) ] new text end "Employee" means any individual employed by an employer but does not include: (1) two or fewer specified individuals employed at any given time in agriculture on a farming unit or operation who are paid a salary; (2) any individual employed in agriculture on a farming unit or operation who is paid a salary greater than the individual would be paid if the individual worked 48 hours at the state minimum wage plus 17 hours at 1-1/2 times the state minimum wage per week; (3) an individual under 18 who is employed in agriculture on a farm to perform services other than corn detasseling or hand field work when one …