Yes, apprentices do get paid. Federal law treats them as employees, which means they must earn at least the federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour for every hour worked on the job, receive overtime when they work more than 40 hours in a week, and move up a schedule of raises tied to the skills they gain as the program progresses.1Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 29 U.S.C. Chapter 8 – Fair Labor Standards
The Minimum Wage Floor
The Fair Labor Standards Act sets the baseline. Under 29 U.S.C. § 206, every covered employer must pay employees, including apprentices, at least $7.25 per hour.1Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 29 U.S.C. Chapter 8 – Fair Labor Standards Federal apprenticeship regulations reinforce that floor: the entry wage in any registered program cannot be lower than the FLSA minimum, unless a higher wage applies under another federal law, a state law, or a collective bargaining agreement.2eCFR. 29 CFR 29.5 – Standards of Apprenticeship Many states set higher minimums, and if you work in one of them, you earn the state rate.
There is one narrow exception. The Department of Labor can issue special certificates that allow certain workers to be paid below the standard minimum wage.1Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 29 U.S.C. Chapter 8 – Fair Labor Standards In practice, this is used most often for “student-learners,” students in programs that combine academic instruction with work at an employer’s site, and even then the rate cannot fall below 75 percent of the applicable minimum wage.3eCFR. 29 CFR Part 520 Subpart E – Student-Learners The certificate must be approved in advance by the DOL.
How Apprentice Pay Increases Over Time
A defining feature of a registered apprenticeship is a built-in raise schedule. Under 29 CFR § 29.5(b)(5), every registered program must include a progressively increasing wage scale that reflects the skills the apprentice acquires.2eCFR. 29 CFR 29.5 – Standards of Apprenticeship Raises are usually triggered by completing a set number of on-the-job hours or demonstrating specific competencies.
Entry-level pay is typically expressed as a percentage of the journeyworker rate, the full wage paid to experienced professionals in the trade. A first-year apprentice might start at around 50 percent of that rate and step up at regular intervals, reaching 100 percent at the end of the program. The exact percentages and milestones are written into your apprenticeship agreement before you start, so you know the pay path from day one.
Overtime
Apprentices are entitled to overtime. Under 29 U.S.C. § 207, covered employees who work more than 40 hours in a workweek must be paid at least one-and-a-half times their regular hourly rate for the extra hours.4Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 29 U.S.C. 207 – Maximum Hours An apprentice earning $15 per hour would receive $22.50 for each overtime hour.
The Department of Labor has been explicit that production, construction, and skilled-trade workers, including those learning through apprenticeships, are nonexempt and cannot be denied overtime regardless of pay level.5U.S. Department of Labor. Fact Sheet 17I – Blue-Collar Workers and the Part 541 Exemptions The white-collar exemptions for executive, administrative, and professional employees do not reach hands-on trade work. If your employer has classified you as exempt while you do apprentice work, that classification is likely wrong.
Do You Get Paid for Classroom Training
Most registered apprenticeships include Related Technical Instruction, the classroom side of the training. Whether that time is paid depends on your program and agreement.
For a registered apprenticeship, the Department of Labor’s enforcement policy is that classroom instruction taking place outside regular working hours does not count as hours worked when two conditions are met. The apprentice must be employed under a written agreement or program that meets the standards of the federal Office of Apprenticeship, and the classroom time cannot involve productive work or the apprentice’s regular job duties.6U.S. Department of Labor. FLSA Hours Worked Advisor – Apprenticeship Programs When both are satisfied, classroom hours are unpaid unless the written agreement says otherwise.
If you’re in a program that is not registered, the general FLSA training-time rule applies, and it’s much harder to make training time unpaid because the instruction is almost always tied to your current work.7eCFR. 29 CFR 785.27 – General
Deductions for Tools, Uniforms, and PPE
Some programs require apprentices to buy tools or uniforms. Under the FLSA, an employer can deduct the cost of items that primarily benefit the employer, but the deductions cannot drop your effective pay below the federal minimum wage or eat into overtime owed for that pay period.8U.S. Department of Labor. Fact Sheet 16 – Deductions From Wages for Uniforms and Other Facilities Required uniform laundering follows the same rule.
Personal protective equipment is different. OSHA requires employers to provide and pay for PPE mandated by safety standards, including hard hats, hearing protection, welding gear, non-prescription safety eyewear, and specialized protective footwear.9Occupational Safety and Health Administration. Employers Must Provide and Pay for PPE Everyday clothing like long pants or standard work boots, and weather items like winter coats or sunscreen, do not have to be employer-paid.
Pay on Federally Funded Construction Jobs
If you work as an apprentice on a federally funded or federally assisted construction project, the Davis-Bacon Act applies. Contractors must pay prevailing wage rates set by the Department of Labor for each geographic area and trade, and those rates are typically well above the federal minimum wage. They include a basic hourly rate plus a fringe benefit component.10Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 40 U.S.C. 3141 – Definitions
On a Davis-Bacon job, your pay is the percentage set in your approved apprenticeship program applied to the journeyworker’s basic hourly prevailing wage for that classification.11U.S. Department of Labor. Davis-Bacon Compliance Principles There is a catch: to get the apprentice rate rather than the full journeyworker rate, you must be individually registered in a program recognized by the federal Office of Apprenticeship or a State Apprenticeship Agency. Anyone listed on the payroll at an apprentice rate who isn’t properly registered must be paid the full journeyworker prevailing wage for the work actually done.12eCFR. 29 CFR 5.5 – Contract Provisions and Related Matters Fringe benefits on these projects are paid according to the approved program’s terms, or, if the agreement is silent, at the full fringe rate listed for the journeyworker classification.13U.S. Department of Labor. Fact Sheet 66E – Davis-Bacon and Related Acts Fringe Benefit Requirements
Taxes Come Out of Your Paycheck
Apprentice wages are treated like any other employee wages for tax purposes. Your employer withholds federal income tax based on the Form W-4 you file and reports your earnings on a Form W-2 at year’s end.14Internal Revenue Service. Publication 15 (2026), Employer’s Tax Guide
Social Security and Medicare taxes apply too. For 2026, Social Security is 6.2 percent on wages up to $184,500, and Medicare is 1.45 percent with no wage cap, each paid by both employee and employer.14Internal Revenue Service. Publication 15 (2026), Employer’s Tax Guide Federal unemployment tax (FUTA) is the employer’s responsibility alone and is not deducted from your paycheck.
What to Do If Your Pay Looks Wrong
Employers must keep detailed payroll records for every apprentice: full name, home address, date of birth if you’re under 19, occupation, regular hourly rate, daily and weekly hours worked, straight-time and overtime earnings, and every addition to or deduction from wages in each pay period.15eCFR. 29 CFR 516.2 – Employees Subject to Minimum Wage or Minimum Wage and Overtime Provisions If your hours aren’t being tracked accurately, your raises aren’t happening on schedule, or your paycheck is short, you can file a complaint with the Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division.