2017 Pennsylvania Tipped Minimum Wage
The 2017 Pennsylvania Tipped Minimum Wage is $2.83.
Effective 2017-01-01Source: Minimum Wage Law Summary (LLC-1) (Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry)Verified 2026-09-01
Compared with 2016
Every figure on this page is unchanged from 2016.
| Item | 2016 | 2017 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Minimum cash wage | $2.83 | $2.83 | +$0 (+0.0%) |
Who it applies to
Employers of tipped employees in Pennsylvania and the employees who receive tips
What changed this year, and why
Pennsylvania's minimum cash wage for tipped employees in 2017 is $2.83 per hour, as published by the U.S. Department of Labor.
Common questions
- How does the tipped minimum cash wage work in Pennsylvania?
- An employer may pay a tipped employee a cash wage of $2.83 per hour, provided the employee earns a specified threshold amount in tips each month. If the employee's tips combined with the $2.83 cash wage fall short of the regular Pennsylvania minimum wage, the employer must make up the difference.
- Can an employer always pay the $2.83 cash wage to a tipped employee?
- No. The tipped employee must earn a specified threshold amount in tips for the employer to pay the reduced cash wage of $2.83 per hour. The employer must also ensure that the employee's total earnings (cash wage plus tips) meet or exceed the regular minimum wage.
Who counts as a tipped employee
Under federal law, a tipped employee in Pennsylvania is someone who works in an occupation where they customarily and regularly receive more than $30 a month in tips. Only tips that the worker actually receives count toward this threshold and toward any tip credit the employer applies. If the worker’s tips fall below that amount, or if the tips are irregular or incidental, the worker is not considered a tipped employee and the employer must pay the full minimum wage for all hours worked. This $30-a-month threshold is the federal floor; Pennsylvania employers must also check whether state law defines tipped work more narrowly, and if so, follow whichever rule covers more workers.
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 Pennsylvania, an employer that takes a tip credit pays you a cash wage directly and counts a portion of your tips toward meeting the minimum wage obligation. The tip credit equals the difference between the cash wage paid to you and the full minimum wage of $7.25 per hour. For 2017, Pennsylvania's minimum cash wage for tipped employees is $2.83 per hour. The employer must still make sure that your cash wage plus your tips reach the full minimum wage in every workweek. If they fall short in any week, the employer must pay the balance. Only tips you actually received count toward this calculation. Pennsylvania employers must follow whichever rule, state or federal, provides the greater protection to workers.
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 Pennsylvania, employers claiming a tip credit must be able to show that tipped employees receive at least the full minimum wage when direct cash wages and the tip credit amount are combined each workweek. If an employee's tips combined with the employer's direct cash wages do not equal the minimum hourly wage in any workweek, the employer must make up the difference. This means that even though you may be earning a lower cash wage as a tipped worker, your total earnings including tips cannot fall below the minimum wage threshold for any given week. The employer has an affirmative obligation to monitor this each week and pay additional wages if your tips fall short. This protection ensures that the tip credit system does not result in workers earning less than the minimum wage.
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
In Pennsylvania, before an employer takes a tip credit against your wages, it must give you specific information. You must be told the amount of the cash wage the employer is paying you, the additional amount the employer claims as a tip credit, that the tip credit cannot exceed the tips you actually received, that all your tips belong to you except for a valid tip pool, and that the tip credit will not apply unless you have been so informed. The notice may be oral or written, but it must be given before the credit is taken. If the employer fails to provide this information, it cannot claim the tip credit at all and must pay you the full minimum wage directly. Pennsylvania employers must follow the rule most protective of employees when state and federal requirements differ.
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
In Pennsylvania, when state law differs from the federal rule, employers must comply with the standard most protective to employees. This means that if Pennsylvania law provides a higher cash wage for tipped workers than the federal minimum, or offers stronger protections regarding tip credits or tip pooling, the employer must follow Pennsylvania's rule. Some states require employers to pay a higher cash wage than the federal floor, and some states prohibit taking a tip credit altogether. Pennsylvania employers cannot simply follow the federal standard if state law gives workers more. This principle ensures that workers receive the maximum protection available under either federal or state law, whichever is more favorable to the employee.
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
Under federal rules that apply in Pennsylvania, an employer that takes a tip credit against the tipped minimum cash wage of $2.83 may require tipped workers to contribute to a tip pool, but that pool must be limited to employees in occupations in which they customarily and regularly receive tips. In practice this means the pool can include only workers such as waiters, bellhops, counter personnel who serve customers, bussers, and service bartenders. Back-of-house staff who do not ordinarily receive tips, such as cooks and dishwashers, cannot be included in the pool while the employer is taking a tip credit. The employer must notify tipped employees of the required contribution amount and may take a tip credit only for the tips the employee ultimately retains after the pool is distributed. The employer itself, as well as any managers or supervisors, may not keep or receive any portion of the pooled tips. A tip pool that includes ineligible workers would violate the rule and jeopardize the employer's ability to claim the tip credit.
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 Pennsylvania, when a worker holds two distinct jobs for the same employer — for example, a hotel maintenance person who also works shifts as a server — the tipped minimum cash wage of $2.83 applies only to the hours spent in the tipped job. The employee is considered a tipped employee solely with respect to their employment as a server, provided they customarily and regularly receive at least $30 a month in tips from that work. For every hour spent in the non-tipped occupation, such as maintenance, the employer must pay the full minimum wage and cannot take any tip credit against those hours. The rule prevents an employer from applying the tipped wage to time the worker spends doing work that does not itself generate tips, even when both jobs are for the same employer.
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. The worker is employed in two occupations, and no tip credit can be taken for their hours of employment in their occupation as a maintenance person.
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.
Minimum Wage Law Summary (LLC-1) (Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry)
- Minimum cash wage
An employer may pay a minimum of $2.83 per hour to an employee who makes $30.00 per month in tips.
Other years
Every Pennsylvania Tipped Minimum Wage year · Tipped Minimum Wage in every state