Mississippi Minimum Wage

Although Mississippi has no minimum wage, most employees in the state are entitled to $7.25 per hour under federal law. The federal minimum wage was increased on July 24, 2009 from $6.55 per hour to $7.25 per hour.

It is vital for Mississippi employers to update their minimum wage posters immediately.

The FLSA or Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 is the relevant federal minimum wage law and covers employers with annual revenue of at least $500,000, and those companies engaged in interstate commerce. This law also covers individual employees engaged in interstate commerce.

Below are some examples of what constitutes interstate commerce:

• Using the Internet, a website or email
• Accepting out-of-state phone calls
• Accepting out-of-state checks
• Accepting credit card or debit card payments
• Buying from out-of-state vendors
• Receiving goods from out-of-state vendors 

With more Mississippi companies utilizing Internet technology, there are few who don’t engage in interstate commerce, including employers in Mississippi.

Therefore, the majority of the businesses in Mississippi were affected by the July 24, 2009 increase in the federal minimum wage.

In some states, it is possible for an employee to be entitled to both the state minimum wage and the federal minimum wage. The law states that whenever a worker falls into this category, he or she is entitled to whichever minimum wage provides the greater benefit. That does not apply in Mississippi, of course, since there is no Mississippi minimum wage.

The increase in the federal minimum wage on July 24, 2009, was the third and last increase set forth in the Fair Minimum Wage Act of 2007. This act set up three increases of 70 cents each, to be administered over three years. The first increases occurred on July 24, 2007, the second on July 24, 2008 and the third on July 24, 2009.

Prior to these increases the federal minimum had not changed for over ten years. The federal minimum of $5.15 per hour in 2006 had less purchasing power than the $1.60 minimum wage of the 1960s.