2017 Kentucky Minimum Wage
The 2017 Kentucky Minimum Wage is $7.25.
Effective 2017-01-01Source: Kentucky Wage and Hour Laws (Kentucky Education and Labor Cabinet)Verified 2026-08-30
Compared with 2016
Every figure on this page is unchanged from 2016.
| Item | 2016 | 2017 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hourly | $7.25 | $7.25 | +$0 (+0.0%) |
Who it applies to
Employers and employees in Kentucky subject to state minimum wage law
What changed this year, and why
Kentucky's minimum wage rate for 2017
Common questions
- What is the minimum wage in Kentucky for 2017?
- The minimum wage in Kentucky is $7.25 per hour.
- What is the minimum cash wage for tipped employees in Kentucky?
- Employers of tipped employees must ensure that tips plus the cash wage paid equal at least the full minimum wage for each workweek.
Minors, students and training wages: who may be paid less than the rate on this page
Kentucky's minimum wage in 2017 is $7.25 per hour. The state document notes that certain exemptions from the minimum wage and overtime rules apply, but it does not list specific categories of workers who may be paid a subminimum wage, such as minors, students, or employees in training programs. Unlike some jurisdictions that have separate lower rates for young workers or learners, Kentucky's 2017 wage law does not establish those categories within this framework. An employer in Kentucky who believes an employee may qualify for a rate below $7.25 per hour must confirm that exemption with state authorities before paying less than the full minimum. A worker in the Commonwealth who is paid below $7.25 per hour and does not fall within a documented exemption has grounds to raise a wage complaint. Until an exemption is verified, the $7.25 hourly floor applies to covered employees regardless of age, student status, or training status.
Certain exemptions from minimum wage and overtime apply.
Kentucky Wage and Hour Laws (Kentucky Education and Labor Cabinet)
Overtime is paid at one and one-half times the regular rate
Kentucky law requires that employees who work more than forty hours in a workweek receive overtime pay at a premium rate. The rule states that the rate of pay for time in excess of forty hours must be not less than one and one-half times the employee's regular hourly rate. For a worker in Kentucky earning the $7.25 minimum wage in 2017, any hours beyond forty in a single workweek must be compensated at the overtime premium derived from that base rate. Kentucky also has a seventh-day rule: an employer who permits an employee to work seven days in one workweek must pay time and a half for the hours worked on the seventh day, unless the employee worked no more than forty hours total during the week. Both rules are enforced by the state, and workers who believe their overtime has been underpaid may raise a complaint.
The rate of pay for time in excess of forty hours shall be not less than one and one-half the hourly rate employed.
Kentucky Wage and Hour Laws (Kentucky Education and Labor Cabinet)
Who to ask about this rate, and where to take a wage complaint
The Kentucky state document identifies the Education and Labor Cabinet's Division of Wages and Hours as the office to contact for questions about the state minimum wage and related wage laws. The division is located at the Mayo-Underwood Building on Mero Street in Frankfort, Kentucky, and may be reached by phone or through the state's website. A Kentucky employee who believes an employer has paid less than the $7.25 hourly minimum, withheld earned wages, failed to pay overtime, or made unlawful deductions should bring the complaint to this office. The division handles inquiries about exemptions from the minimum wage and overtime, performance bond requirements for construction and mining employers, and other wage and hour matters under Kentucky law. Workers are encouraged to call the division directly rather than relying on informal guidance, because certain exemptions apply and the division can confirm whether a particular situation is covered.
Division of Wages and Hours Mayo-Underwood Building 500 Mero Street, 3rd Floor Frankfort, Kentucky 40601-4381 Phone (502) 564-3534 elc.ky.gov
Kentucky Wage and Hour Laws (Kentucky Education and Labor Cabinet)
When tips, meals or lodging count toward the minimum wage
Kentucky allows a tip credit for employees who customarily and regularly receive more than $30 per month in tips. The state document states that in those occupations, the employer may pay a minimum of $2.13 per hour, provided that for each week where the credit is taken, the employee's tips combined with the cash wage equal at least the full minimum wage. In Kentucky in 2017, that means the cash wage plus tips must reach at least $7.25 per hour for every week. The document also prohibits an employer from using an employee's tips toward payment of the minimum wage beyond what the law allows and bars requiring an employee to hand over gratuities except for lawful withholdings. Employees may agree among themselves to pool tips, and a required tip pool must be kept in a segregated account open to the pool's participants.
Any employee engaged in an occupation in which more than $30 dollars per month is customarily and regularly received in tips, the employer may pay a minimum of $2.13 per hour if the employer' records can establish for each week where credit is taken, when adding the tips received to wages paid, not less than the minimum wage is received by the employee.
Kentucky Wage and Hour Laws (Kentucky Education and Labor Cabinet)
What an employer may deduct from your pay
Kentucky law sets narrow limits on what an employer may deduct from an employee's wages. Under the state document, an employer may not withhold any part of the agreed wage rate except when required by local, state, or federal law; when the employee has given express written authorization for insurance premiums or hospital or medical dues; when the employee has given express written authorization for other deductions that do not amount to a rebate from the standard wage arrived at by collective bargaining or statute; or for union dues authorized by a joint wage agreement or collective bargaining contract. On top of those limits, the document lists items an employer may never deduct: fines; cash shortages in a till shared by two or more persons; breakage; losses from dishonored checks when the employee had discretion to accept or reject the check; and losses from defective work, lost or stolen property, damage, customer credit default, or nonpayment — unless those losses are attributable to the employee's willful or intentional disregard of the employer's interest.
No employer shall withhold from any employee's wages any part of the agreed wage rate; unless a) the employer is required to do so by local, state, or federal law; or b) when a deduction is expressly authorized in writing by the employee to cover insurance premiums, hospital, or medical dues; or c) when a deduction is expressly authorized in writing by the employee for other deductions not amounting to a rebate or deduction from the standard wage arrived at by collective bargaining or pursuant to wage agreement or statute; or d) Deductions for union dues where such deductions are authorized by joint wage agreements or collective bargaining contracts negotiated between employers and employees or their representatives.
Kentucky Wage and Hour Laws (Kentucky Education and Labor Cabinet)
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.
Kentucky Wage and Hour Laws (Kentucky Education and Labor Cabinet)
- Hourly
MINIMUM WAGE = $7.25 per hour
Other years
Every Kentucky Minimum Wage year · Minimum Wage in every state