Voters in Florida passed a Constitutional Amendment in the November 2020 election to increase the state’s minimum wage in incremental steps to $15.00 per hour by the end of 2026. The first of five annual increases will go into effect on September 30, 2021, when the minimum wage will increase to $10.00 per hour.
Employees who are subject to a tip credit must be paid a direct wage of at least $6.98 per hour, and must meet all other qualifications for the tip credit.
Employers should not forget to update their Florida minimum wage posters by September 30, 2021. In particular, employers who utilize the tip credit should be mindful that they are required to provide the following information – verbally or in writing – before the employer may use the tip credit:
- The amount of cash wage the employer is paying a tipped employee, which effective September 30, 2021, must be at least $6.98 per hour;
- The additional amount claimed by the employer as a tip credit, which in Florida cannot exceed $3.02 per hour;
- That the tip credit claimed by the employer cannot exceed the amount of tips actually received by the tipped employee;
- That all tips received by the tipped employee are to be retained by the employee except for a valid tip pooling arrangement limited to employees who customarily and regularly receive tips; and
- That the tip credit will not apply to any tipped employee unless the employee has been informed of these tip credit provision.