Minimum wage increases took effect on December 31, 2014, raising the New York minimum wage from $8.00 to $8.75 per hour for employees who work based on hourly wages. By the way, another minimum wage increase also occurs approximately a year from now, on December 31, 2015, raising hourly wages to $9.00 per hour.
According to the New York Department of Labor , most employees working for restaurants or hotels in New York State are covered by the wage increase. However, the hourly wage increase does not apply to tipped employees, such as servers, persons busing tables or hotel bellhops. Even so, their overtime rates are affected and must increase when they work over 40 hours per week or work days with spreads over 10 hours for that day.
The maximum tip credits employers can claim also increased by the same amount that minimum wages increased, which would be $.75 beginning 2015 and $.025 beginning 2016. Tip credits are $3.75 in 2015 and $4.00 in 2016. Non-overtime hourly wages along with credits for meals and lodging did not increase.
Pay increases apply for tipped employee’s call-in pay and uniform maintenance pay. In addition, employers must pay the difference for any tipped employee’s hourly pay combined with tips that does not add up to the minimum wage figure.
It is important to comply with changes in wage and hour laws. Business owners who fail to do so often find themselves embroiled in disputes and subject to lawsuits. Our employment defense attorneys at Stephen Hans & Associates offer employers decades of legal experience from protecting our clients’ rights in wage and hour disputes