Exemptions from minimum wage, overtime pay, and recordkeeping requirements for minor league baseball players, the official text

2025 - 2026 LEGISLATURE
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2025 SENATE BILL 374
July 16, 2025 - Introduced by Senators Feyen, Carpenter, Bradley, Dassler-Alfheim, Spreitzer and Wirch, cosponsored by Representatives Dallman, Haywood, Brooks, DeSmidt, Green, Kreibich, Murphy, Mursau, O'Connor, Ortiz-Velez, Sinicki, Sheehan, Snodgrass, Steffen, Swearingen, Tusler, Subeck, Goodwin, Dittrich and Bare. Referred to Committee on Government Operations, Labor and Economic Development.

An Act to amend 104.09; to create 103.023 and 104.01 (2) (b) 6. of the statutes; relating to: exemptions from minimum wage, overtime pay, and recordkeeping requirements for minor league baseball players.

Analysis by the Legislative Reference Bureau
Currently, the state minimum wage law requires that employers pay the applicable minimum wage set in statute to their employees and that employers keep certain records that include hours of employment and wages for employees. This bill exempts from these requirements individuals who have entered into a contract to play minor league baseball and who are compensated under a collective bargaining agreement that expressly provides for wages and working conditions.
Also under current law, the Department of Workforce Development must classify by rule periods of work as periods to be paid at an employee’s regular rate of pay and periods to be paid at an overtime rate of at least one and one−half times that regular rate. DWD has promulgated rules requiring employers to pay overtime pay for all hours worked in excess of 40 hours per week and to keep certain records that include hours of employment and wages for employees but exempting certain employees from the overtime pay requirements. This bill exempts from these overtime pay and recordkeeping requirements individuals who have entered into a contract to play minor league baseball and who are compensated under a collective bargaining agreement that expressly provides for wages and working conditions.

The people of the state of Wisconsin, represented in senate and assembly, do enact as follows:

Section 1. 103.023 of the statutes is created to read:
103.023 Hours of labor and recordkeeping; minor league baseball players. (1) In promulgating rules under s. 103.02 classifying periods of time into periods to be paid for at regular rates and periods to be paid for at the rate of at least one and one-half times the regular rates, the department shall exempt from the application of those rules an individual who has entered into a contract to play baseball at the minor league level and who is compensated pursuant to the terms of a collective bargaining agreement that expressly provides for wages and working conditions.
(2) The department shall also exempt an individual described in sub. (1) from the application of rules promulgated under s. 103.02 or 104.09 that require employers to keep records of the hours of employment and wages of employees.
Section 2. 104.01 (2) (b) 6. of the statutes is created to read:
104.01 (2) (b) 6. Any individual who has entered into a contract to play baseball at the minor league level and who is compensated pursuant to the terms of a collective bargaining agreement that expressly provides for wages and working conditions.
Section 3. 104.09 of the statutes is amended to read:
104.09 Records. Each employer shall keep a record of the names and addresses of all student learners and employees, the hours of employment and
wages of each, and such other records pertaining to ability as the department requires, except that an employer is not required to keep a record of the hours of employment of an individual who is exempt under ss. 103.023 and 104.01 (2) (b) 6. or of any other employee who is exempt under rules promulgated by the department from the requirement under s. 103.02 that an employee be paid overtime compensation, as defined in s. 103.025 (1) (c), and who is not compensated on an hourly rate basis.
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