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1-1 1.1 – Minimum Wage Rates and Tip Credit Amounts The table that follows shows the minimum hourly wage rates for all of the states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico. In states without a minimum wage rate or in which the minimum wage is lower than the federal minimum wage of $7.25, the federal rate applies to employees covered by the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). Where the state rate is higher than the federal rate, the state rate applies to all employees covered by the state law. The table also shows which employees are covered by the state minimum wage law as well as which employees are exempt. Most states’ min- imum wage exemptions are similar to those under the FLSA, and some states’ laws exempt those employees who are covered by the FLSA. Also shown on the table are the state subminimum wage rates—the lower rates that many states permit employers to pay to minors and certain other groups of individuals, such as appren- tices and handicapped workers—for a limited period of time. If a state does not permit payment of a subminimum wage to such workers, the employer must pay the greater of the FLSA “youth” or “opportunity” wage of $4.25 an hour (for the first 90 consecutive calendar days of employment) and then the state minimum wage. Table 1.1 also shows the amount of tips received by an employee that can be applied by an employer as a tip credit against the minimum wage in each state, the minimum cash wage amount tipped employees must be paid if the employer applies the tip credit, and any conditions that must be met in order to apply the tip credit. Employers subject to the federal minimum wage are permit- ted to pay tipped employees $2.13 per hour in wages, provided the employee’s tips are enough to make up the rest of the federal minimum wage if the employee’s tips do not bring the employee’s total wages up to the minimum wage, the employer must make up the difference. For employers to take advantage of the tip credit under the FLSA, they must meet the following conditions: 1. The tipped employee must actually receive at least as much in tips as the credit taken by the employer. 2. The employee must be informed about the tip credit provisions of the law before the credit is taken. 3. All tips received by the employee must be kept by the employee, although the employer may require tip pooling among employees who are customarily and regularly tipped (not janitors, dishwashers, salad makers, managers, etc.). 4. Credit card tips must be given to the employee by the next payday, although the credit card company’s percentage charge for the use of the card may be deducted from the tip. 5. The tip credit may not be increased for overtime hours worked that are paid at a premium rate. Some states have laws that prohibit the use of tip credits or that provide for a lower tip credit amount than the FLSA—if the state law is more favorable to employees than the FLSA, the state law must be followed by employers operating in that state. For tipped employees covered by both APA's Guide to State Payroll Laws