SB 780

This bill raises the separate minimum wage required to be paid to tipped

employees by $0.95 per year until it reaches $7.08 per hour, one year after which the

bill eliminates the separate minimum wage for tipped employees altogether, making

tipped employees subject to the general minimum wage.

Generally under current law, every wage paid by any employer to any employee

must be not less than the applicable minimum wage established under the statutes.

However, if an employer of a tipped employee establishes that, when adding the tips

received by the tipped employee in a week to the wages paid to the tipped employee

in that week, the tipped employee receives not less than the applicable minimum

wage (generally $7.25 per hour), the minimum wage for the tipped employee is $2.33

per hour or, with respect to an employee under 20 years of age in the first 90

consecutive days of employment with his or her employer (opportunity employee),

$2.13 per hour.

Beginning approximately six months after enactment, this bill eliminates the

alternate minimum wage for tipped employees who are opportunity employees and

raises the minimum wage for all tipped employees by $0.95, to $3.28 per hour. The

bill further raises the minimum wage for tipped employees by $0.95 per year until

it reaches $7.08 per hour. Beginning one year after it reaches $7.08 per hour, the bill

eliminates the separate minimum wage for tipped employees altogether, making

tipped employees subject to the general minimum wage of $7.25 per hour or, for

opportunity employees, $5.90 per hour.