2017 Delaware Tipped Minimum Wage
The 2017 Delaware Tipped Minimum Wage is $2.23.
Effective 2017-01-01Source: Delaware Department of Labor Labor Law Poster (Delaware Department of Labor, Division of Industrial Affairs)Verified 2026-09-01
Compared with 2016
Every figure on this page is unchanged from 2016.
| Item | 2016 | 2017 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Minimum cash wage | $2.23 | $2.23 | +$0 (+0.0%) |
Who it applies to
Employees in Delaware who receive tips
What changed this year, and why
Delaware's minimum cash wage for tipped employees is $2.23 per hour. Delaware's tipped minimum cash wage is higher than the cash wage required by federal law, and employers must pay Delaware's higher rate. Employers must be able to prove that tipped employees received the balance of the full minimum rate in tips.
Common questions
- What is the tipped minimum cash wage in Delaware?
- The minimum cash wage for tipped employees in Delaware is $2.23 per hour. The employer must be able to prove that the employee received enough tips to bring their total earnings up to the full minimum wage; if not, the employer must make up the difference.
Who counts as a tipped employee
Under the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), a tipped employee is someone engaged in an occupation in which they customarily and regularly receive more than $30 a month in tips. This definition matters for workers in Delaware because it determines whether their employer may pay them the state's reduced cash wage of $2.23 per hour instead of the full minimum wage. Only tips that are actually received by the employee count toward meeting this threshold — expected or projected tips do not. If a Delaware worker's occupation does not meet this standard, the employer cannot treat them as a tipped employee and must pay at least the full minimum wage for all hours worked, regardless of any tips the worker may occasionally receive.
Under the FLSA, a tipped employee is an employee engaged in an occupation in which they customarily and regularly receive more than $30 a month in tips.
Fact Sheet #15: Tipped Employees Under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) (DOL)
What a tip credit is, and the cash wage underneath it
In Delaware, employers may take a tip credit under federal law. The tip credit is the difference between the direct cash wage paid to a tipped worker and the federal minimum wage. Delaware's minimum cash wage for tipped employees is $2.23 per hour. This means the employer can count a portion of the tips the worker actually receives toward meeting its minimum wage obligation, as long as the cash wage paid plus the tips received together reach at least the full minimum wage. If the worker's tips combined with the $2.23 per hour cash wage fall short of the minimum wage in any workweek, the employer must pay the shortfall directly. The tip credit cannot exceed the amount of tips actually received by the employee in that workweek.
An employer can take an FLSA tip credit equal to the difference between the direct wage, or the cash wage it pays directly to the tipped employee, and the federal minimum wage, which is currently $7.25 per hour.
Fact Sheet #15: Tipped Employees Under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) (DOL)
When the tips do not get you to the minimum wage
In Delaware, if a tipped employee's tips combined with the employer's direct cash wages do not equal the federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour in a given workweek, the employer must make up the difference. This means that even though the employer pays the reduced cash wage of $2.23 per hour, the worker must still end up with at least $7.25 per hour when tips are added in. The employer has an ongoing obligation to check this each workweek—if business is slow and tips are light, the employer cannot simply pay the low cash wage and leave the worker short. The employer must calculate the total compensation each week and pay whatever additional amount is needed to bring the employee up to the full minimum wage for every hour worked.
If an employee’s tips combined with the employer’s direct (or cash) wages do not equal the minimum hourly wage of $7.25 per hour in each workweek, the employer must make up the difference.
Fact Sheet #15: Tipped Employees Under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) (DOL)
The notice an employer owes you before it takes the credit
Before an employer in Delaware can take a tip credit, it must give the tipped employee specific information about the arrangement. Employers must provide the following information to tipped employees before taking a tip credit: the amount of the direct cash wage being paid (which must be at least $2.23 per hour in Delaware), the additional amount claimed as a tip credit, that the tip credit cannot exceed the tips actually received, that all tips belong to the employee except for valid tip pooling, and that the tip credit will not apply unless the employee has been informed of these provisions. The notice can be given orally or in writing, but it must happen before the employer starts using the tip credit. If the employer fails to provide this information, it loses the right to take the tip credit altogether and must pay the full minimum wage directly.
Employers must provide the following information to tipped employees before taking a tip credit under the FLSA:
Fact Sheet #15: Tipped Employees Under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) (DOL)
When state law gives more than the federal rule
When federal law and Delaware state law both apply to tipped employees but set different standards, employers must follow whichever rule gives workers greater protection. This means that if Delaware requires a higher cash wage than the federal minimum or places additional restrictions on tip credits, the employer must comply with the state law instead of the more lenient federal standard. The federal rule is a floor, not a ceiling—states can set stricter requirements, and employers operating in Delaware must obey the stricter standard. This ensures that workers in Delaware receive at least the same protections as federal law provides, and potentially more if Delaware law offers stronger safeguards for tipped employees.
When state law differs from the federal FLSA, an employer must comply with the standard most protective to employees.
Fact Sheet #15: Tipped Employees Under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) (DOL)
Which tip pools you can be made to join
In Delaware, an employer that takes a tip credit—paying the minimum cash wage of $2.23 rather than the full minimum wage—may require tipped employees to contribute their tips to a pool, but only if the pool is limited to employees in occupations in which they customarily and regularly receive tips. Eligible participants include waiters, bellhops, counter personnel who serve customers, bussers, and service bartenders. The employer must notify tipped employees of the required contribution amount, may take a tip credit only for the tips the employee ultimately keeps after the pool is distributed, and may not retain any of the tips for any other purpose. Managers and supervisors may not receive tips from the pool, and the employer itself may not take a share.
An employer that takes a tip credit can require tipped employees to contribute tips only to a tip pool which is limited to employees in occupations in which they customarily and regularly receive tips, such as waiters, bellhops, counter personnel (who serve customers), bussers, and service bartenders.
Fact Sheet #15: Tipped Employees Under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) (DOL)
Doing two jobs for one employer
In Delaware, when one employer asks a worker to perform two distinct roles—for example, a hotel maintenance person who also works shifts as a server—the worker counts as a tipped employee only with respect to the hours spent in the tipped occupation. The worker qualifies for the tipped minimum cash wage of $2.23 only for the hours worked as a server, and only if they customarily and regularly receive at least $30 a month in tips in that role. For all hours worked in the non-tipped occupation, such as maintenance, the employer must pay the full minimum wage and may not take a tip credit against those hours. This rule is distinct from related duties a server may perform, such as cleaning and setting tables, toasting bread, or making coffee; those tasks are part of the tipped occupation itself and do not create a separate non-tipped role.
In such a situation the employee, if they customarily and regularly receive at least $30 a month in tips for their work as a server, is a tipped employee only with respect to their employment as a server.
Fact Sheet #15: Tipped Employees Under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) (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.
Delaware Department of Labor Labor Law Poster (Delaware Department of Labor, Division of Industrial Affairs)
- Minimum cash wage
The minimum cash wage payable to employees who receive tips is $ 2.23 per hour, effective 10/1/96.
Other years
Every Delaware Tipped Minimum Wage year · Tipped Minimum Wage in every state