Tennessee gives whichever is later: the next regular payday, or 21 days after your last day.
Law: Tenn. Code Ann. §50-2-103 · Rules checked October 2026
The same later-of rule applies when you quit. The free wage claim for either path goes to the Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development — the walkthrough in the kit lists its window and what to attach.
Tennessee sets no automatic waiting-time penalty; unpaid wages are pursued through the Department of Labor or court.
Your state has no statute on vacation payout. What governs is the employer's written policy and any practice it has followed. Get the policy in writing; a promise in the handbook is the whole ballgame.
The free claim goes to Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development. It costs nothing and you do not need a lawyer; what you need is the amount computed, the demand already sent where your state rewards one, and the file assembled.
Filing window: set by state law and shorter than people expect — file within weeks, not months.
Compute your Tennessee verdict — free
General information from the published statute — not legal advice. Penalty figures elsewhere on this site are statutory maximums, with willfulness conditions named where the statute names them.