The Florida minimum wage remains at $7.25 in 2011, the same rate as the federal minimum wage. Because the state minimum wage is lower than the federal rate, by law employees are entitled to the federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour. That rate is not expected to increase during 2011, according to an announcement by the state Agency for Workforce Innovation.
Tipped employees must still be paid $4.23 per hour in Florida during 2011. However, the employees must average at least $7.25 per hour for all hours worked in the payroll week, when tips and wages are added together. If the employee does not average $7.25 per hour in wages plus tips, the Florida employer must pay the difference in wages.
Every Florida employer covered by the state minimum wage law must display both a state and federal minimum wage poster in a “conspicuous and accessible place in each establishment where these employees work.”
Under state law, the Florida minimum wage must increase each year by a percentage based upon the federal Consumer Price Index for urban wage earners and clerical workers in the South Region for the year ending on August 31. However, even with that adjustment the Florida minimum wage is still lower than the federal minimum wage, and therefore, the higher rate prevails.
Florida is one of about a dozen states that adjust the minimum wage annually based on inflation. In most of those states including Washington and Oregon, the minimum wage can only go up. However, in Colorado the state minimum wage can actually be reduced during a recession, as it was in January 2010.
The first annual Florida minimum wage adjustment went into effect on January 1, 2005. The prior November, Florida voters had approved the change. At that time, the Florida minimum wage was higher than the federal minimum wage of $5.15 per hour.
