2025 Nebraska Tipped Minimum Wage
The 2025 Nebraska Tipped Minimum Wage is $2.13.
Effective 2025-01-01Source: Nebraska Minimum Wage Increases to $13.50 Effective January 1, 2025 (Nebraska Department of Labor)Verified 2026-08-31
Compared with 2024
Every figure on this page is unchanged from 2024.
| Item | 2024 | 2025 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Minimum cash wage | $2.13 | $2.13 | +$0 (+0.0%) |
Who it applies to
Employers of tipped employees in Nebraska
What changed this year, and why
Nebraska's minimum cash wage for tipped employees remains $2.13 per hour, effective January 1, 2025.
Common questions
- What is the minimum cash wage for tipped employees in Nebraska in 2025?
- The minimum cash wage for tipped employees in Nebraska is $2.13 per hour, effective January 1, 2025.
- Must the employee's total earnings reach the full minimum wage?
- Yes. Employers must ensure that the cash wage plus tips received together equal at least the applicable minimum wage.
Every amount on this page is a published figure rather than yours. The Tips needed per hour takes the number you enter and works it out against them, showing which published figure it used.
Who counts as a tipped employee
In Nebraska, a tipped employee is someone who receives tips as a regular part of their job, such as servers, bartenders, or hotel staff. The state has set a lower minimum cash wage for these workers at $2.13 per hour. This special rate applies only when tips are customarily received as part of the job. If you work in a position where tips are occasional or not expected, you are entitled to Nebraska's full minimum wage instead of the reduced tipped rate. Employers must still ensure that your total earnings, including tips, reach at least the full minimum wage for each hour worked. The distinction matters because it determines whether your employer can pay you the lower cash wage or must pay you the full state minimum from the start.
The minimum hourly wage for tipped employees is $2.13 per hour.
Nebraska Minimum Wage Increases to $13.50 Effective January 1, 2025 (Nebraska Department of Labor)
What a tip credit is, and the cash wage underneath it
Nebraska employers who pay tipped workers the reduced cash wage of $2.13 per hour are taking what federal law calls a tip credit. The tip credit is the gap between that cash wage and the full state minimum wage. You keep all your tips, but your employer counts them toward meeting the minimum wage obligation. This arrangement only works if your tips are large enough to bridge the gap between the cash wage you receive and the full minimum wage rate. If in any workweek your tips plus the cash wage fall short of the full minimum wage when multiplied by your hours, your employer must pay you the difference out of pocket. The cash wage of $2.13 is the lowest your employer can pay you before tips are counted, but you are legally entitled to reach at least the full state minimum through the combination of cash wage and tips every pay period. This protection ensures that tipped workers in Nebraska never earn less than the standard minimum wage when their tips and cash wage are combined.
The minimum hourly wage for tipped employees is $2.13 per hour.
Nebraska Minimum Wage Increases to $13.50 Effective January 1, 2025 (Nebraska Department of Labor)
When the tips do not get you to the minimum wage
In Nebraska, if you are a tipped employee earning the cash wage of $2.13 per hour, your employer must track your total earnings each workweek. Your tips plus the cash wage must bring you up to at least the full state minimum wage for every hour you worked. If a slow shift, a bad week, or any other reason means your tips fall short, your employer must make up the difference from their own funds. This is not optional: Nebraska law places the responsibility squarely on the employer to ensure the combined total reaches the minimum. You should check your pay stub each period to confirm this happened. If your employer did not cover the shortfall, you are owed back wages. The employer cannot shift this risk onto you as the worker; the guarantee of the minimum wage is theirs to uphold. Nebraska's Division of Labor Standards can answer questions about wages and enforce these requirements for workers across the state.
Employers are responsible for ensuring that wages and tips combined equal at least the minimum wage.
Nebraska Minimum Wage Increases to $13.50 Effective January 1, 2025 (Nebraska Department of Labor)
The notice an employer owes you before it takes the credit
Before your Nebraska employer can pay you the tipped cash wage of $2.13 per hour instead of the full minimum wage, federal law requires them to inform you about the tip credit arrangement. This notice must explain that you will receive the reduced cash wage, that your tips will be counted toward meeting the minimum wage requirement, and that all tips are yours to keep. The employer must provide this information before they start using the tip credit, not after. If your employer never told you about the tip credit or did not explain how it works, they may not be legally allowed to pay you the lower tipped wage. You would then be entitled to the full state minimum wage for all hours worked, regardless of how much you earned in tips. This notice requirement protects you by ensuring you understand your wage structure before you begin working under it. Nebraska's Division of Labor Standards can help if you believe your employer failed to provide proper notice.
The minimum hourly wage for tipped employees is $2.13 per hour.
Nebraska Minimum Wage Increases to $13.50 Effective January 1, 2025 (Nebraska Department of Labor)
Your employer, your manager and your supervisor may not keep your tips
Under federal law, your employer, your manager, and your supervisor may not keep any portion of your tips. All tips you receive belong to you, whether they are left on the table, added to a credit card receipt, or contributed through a tip pool. This rule applies to tipped employees in Nebraska earning the cash wage of $2.13 per hour and to all other workers who receive tips. Employers cannot use your tips to offset their business expenses, pay for breakage, or supplement their own income. Even if your employer pays you more than the minimum cash wage, they still cannot take a share of your tips unless they are participating in a valid tip pool with other eligible employees. This protection ensures that tips remain the property of the workers who earn them through direct service to customers. If you believe your employer or supervisor is keeping your tips, you can contact Nebraska's Division of Labor Standards to report the violation and seek recovery of your wages.
Employers are responsible for ensuring that wages and tips combined equal at least the minimum wage.
Nebraska Minimum Wage Increases to $13.50 Effective January 1, 2025 (Nebraska Department of Labor)
Which tip pools you can be made to join
In Nebraska, tip pooling arrangements must follow federal rules under the Fair Labor Standards Act. A valid tip pool is limited to employees in occupations where they customarily and regularly receive tips, such as servers, bussers, bartenders, and hosts. You cannot be required to share your tips with managers, supervisors, or employees who do not traditionally receive tips, such as cooks or dishwashers. If your employer takes a tip credit and pays you the cash wage of $2.13 per hour, the tip pool must include only tipped employees. If your employer pays you the full minimum wage without taking a tip credit, the pool may include non-tipped workers like back-of-house staff, but still cannot include managers or supervisors. All tips in the pool remain the property of the employees who contribute them. If you are being forced to share tips with ineligible workers or with management, this violates federal law. Nebraska's Division of Labor Standards can help you understand whether your tip pool arrangement is legal and assist with recovering any improperly shared tips.
The minimum hourly wage for tipped employees is $2.13 per hour.
Nebraska Minimum Wage Increases to $13.50 Effective January 1, 2025 (Nebraska Department of Labor)
Doing two jobs for one employer
When you work two different jobs for the same employer in Nebraska, such as working as a server during dinner and as a host during lunch, you are a tipped employee only with respect to the job where you customarily receive tips. Your employer can pay you the tipped cash wage of $2.13 per hour only for the hours you spend in the tipped position. For the hours you work in the non-tipped position, your employer must pay you the full state minimum wage. The employer cannot average your tips across both jobs to justify paying you the lower wage for all your hours. Each job must be evaluated separately. If you spend substantial time in non-tipped work, your employer may not be able to classify you as a tipped employee at all. Nebraska employers are responsible for ensuring that wages and tips combined equal at least the minimum wage for each type of work you perform. You should track your hours in each position and verify that you received the correct wage rate for each. If your employer is paying you the tipped wage for all hours regardless of which job you were doing, you may be owed additional wages.
Employers are responsible for ensuring that wages and tips combined equal at least the minimum wage.
Nebraska Minimum Wage Increases to $13.50 Effective January 1, 2025 (Nebraska Department of Labor)
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.
Nebraska Minimum Wage Increases to $13.50 Effective January 1, 2025 (Nebraska Department of Labor)
- Minimum cash wage
The minimum hourly wage for tipped employees is $2.13 per hour.
Other years
Every Nebraska Tipped Minimum Wage year · Tipped Minimum Wage in every state