2015 Federal Minimum Wage
The 2015 Federal Minimum Wage is $7.25.
Effective 2015-01-01Source: Minimum Wage (DOL)Verified 2026-09-01
Who it applies to
Workers and employers covered by the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA)
What changed this year, and why
The federal minimum wage under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) was $7.25 per hour in 2015. Many states also have their own minimum wage laws; where a state provides a higher rate, employers must pay the greater amount.
Common questions
- What was the federal minimum wage in 2015?
- The federal minimum wage was $7.25 per hour in 2015.
- Does the federal minimum wage apply in every state?
- The federal minimum wage applies to covered workers nationwide, but many states have their own minimum wage laws. When a state rate is higher, employers must pay the greater amount.
Who to ask about this rate, and where to take a wage complaint
The Fair Labor Standards Act does not include procedures for collecting wages or commissions that exceed the federal minimum wage. If an employee is owed more than the federal rate requires - such as promised wages above the minimum, commissions, or fringe benefits - the FLSA itself does not offer a filing mechanism for those claims. However, individual states may have laws that allow workers to file such claims. Employees who believe they are owed wages above the federal minimum should look to their state's labor agency or wage-claim process, because state law may provide a path to recover those amounts, including in some cases fringe benefits.
The FLSA does not provide wage payment collection procedures for an employee’s usual or promised wages or commissions in excess of those required by the FLSA. However, some states do have laws under which such claims (sometimes including fringe benefits) may be filed.
Minimum Wage (DOL)
State minimum wage laws that give more than the federal rate
The $7.25 federal minimum is a floor and not a ceiling, and for most workers in the United States it is not the operative number. Many states set their own minimum wage, some of them well above the federal one, and where a state gives greater protection the employer must comply with both laws - which in practice means paying the higher rate. Nothing in the federal act preempts the more generous state rule; it sets the minimum below which no covered employer may go. Two consequences worth carrying. Your own rate is the highest of the federal, state and local figures that reach your job, so the number to look up is your state's and your city's rather than this one. And a job that pays exactly $7.25 in a state with a higher minimum is not a lawful federal-rate job; it is an underpaid one.
Many states also have minimum wage laws. Some state laws provide greater employee protections; employers must comply with both.
Minimum Wage (DOL)
How each figure was verified
Each number below was read from a stored copy of the document named beside it, and checked to occur word for word in the quoted sentence. The digest is of that stored text.
Minimum Wage (DOL)
- Hourly
The federal minimum wage is $7.25 per hour
Other years
Every Federal Minimum Wage year · Minimum Wage in every state