2018 Pennsylvania Tipped Minimum Wage
The 2018 Pennsylvania Tipped Minimum Wage is $2.83.
Effective 2018-01-01Source: Minimum Wage Law Summary (LLC-1) (Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry)Verified 2026-09-01
Compared with 2017
Every figure on this page is unchanged from 2017.
| Item | 2017 | 2018 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Minimum cash wage | $2.83 | $2.83 | +$0 (+0.0%) |
Who it applies to
Tipped employees in Pennsylvania whose employers claim a tip credit under the Pennsylvania Minimum Wage Act.
What changed this year, and why
The 2018 tipped minimum wage (minimum cash wage) in Pennsylvania is presented.
Common questions
- What was the tipped minimum wage in Pennsylvania in 2018?
- In 2018, the minimum cash wage for tipped employees in Pennsylvania was $2.83 per hour.
- What if an employee's tips plus the cash wage do not reach the regular minimum wage?
- The employer must pay the difference between the employee's tips plus the cash wage and the regular minimum wage.
Who counts as a tipped employee
Under the Fair Labor Standards Act, a tipped employee in Pennsylvania is someone engaged in an occupation where they customarily and regularly receive more than $30 a month in tips. This $30 monthly threshold is the federal standard that determines whether a worker counts as a tipped employee for purposes of the special wage rules. If you work in a role where customers typically tip you and those tips exceed $30 per month, your employer may classify you as a tipped employee and potentially pay you a lower direct cash wage, as long as the tip credit rules are followed. This definition applies to the occupation itself - it is not enough to occasionally receive tips; the tips must be a regular and customary part of the work you do.
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
Pennsylvania employers who take a tip credit must pay tipped workers at least $2.83 per hour in direct cash wages. The tip credit is the difference between that cash wage and the full minimum wage: it lets the employer count a portion of the tips you receive toward its obligation to pay you the minimum wage. Under federal law, the tip credit equals the gap between the cash wage the employer pays directly and the federal minimum wage. Only tips you actually receive count when determining whether you are a tipped employee and when applying the credit. Your employer must still make sure that your cash wage plus the tip credit does not exceed the tips you actually bring in, and that the combination of your cash wage and your tips reaches at least the full minimum wage every 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
If your tips combined with your employer's direct cash wages fall short of the full federal minimum wage in any workweek, the employer must make up the difference. This protection applies in Pennsylvania: every single workweek, your employer must be able to show that you received at least the minimum hourly wage when your cash wages and the tip credit are added together. If a slow week leaves you below that floor, your employer cannot simply absorb the shortfall - it is required to pay you enough additional wages to bring you up to the minimum. The guarantee runs workweek by workweek, so a strong week does not excuse a weak one; each period stands on its own.
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 taking a tip credit in Pennsylvania, an employer must give you advance notice of specific information about how your wages will be calculated. Employers must provide the following information to tipped employees before taking a tip credit: the amount of the direct cash wage the employer is paying, the additional amount claimed as a tip credit, confirmation that the tip credit cannot exceed the tips actually received, that all tips you receive belong to you (except for valid tip-pool contributions), and that the tip credit does not apply unless you have been informed of these provisions. The notice may be given orally or in writing, but if the employer fails to give it, it cannot take the tip credit at all - meaning it must pay you the full minimum wage from its own funds.
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 Pennsylvania law and the federal FLSA both apply but set different rules for tipped employees, the employer must comply with the standard most protective to employees. This means that if Pennsylvania requires a higher cash wage than the federal minimum or places other conditions on the tip credit that are more favorable to workers, the employer must follow the Pennsylvania rule. For example, Pennsylvania sets a cash wage of $2.83 per hour for tipped employees, and if state law provides greater protections than the federal baseline - such as a higher direct wage, a smaller allowed tip credit, or additional notice requirements - those state-level protections take priority. Workers in Pennsylvania are entitled to whichever rule produces the better outcome for them in any given situation.
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)
Your employer, your manager and your supervisor may not keep your tips
In Pennsylvania, the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) prohibits employers from keeping any portion of employees' tips for any purpose, whether directly or through a tip pool. An employer may not require an employee to give their tips to the employer, a supervisor, or a manager, even where a tipped employee receives at least the federal minimum wage (currently $7.25) per hour in wages directly from the employer and the employer takes no tip credit. This rule applies regardless of whether an employer takes a tip credit. Managers and supervisors include any employee whose primary duty is managing the enterprise or a customarily recognized department or subdivision of the enterprise, who customarily and regularly directs the work of at least two or more full-time employees or their equivalent, and who has the authority to hire or fire other employees, or whose suggestions and recommendations as to hiring or firing are given particular weight.
Regardless of whether an employer takes a tip credit, the FLSA prohibits employers from keeping any portion of employees’ tips for any purpose, whether directly or through a tip pool. An employer may not require an employee to give their tips to the employer, a supervisor, or a manager, even where a tipped employee receives at least the federal minimum wage (currently $7.25) per hour in wages directly from the employer and the employer takes no tip credit.
Fact Sheet #15: Tipped Employees Under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) (DOL)
Which tip pools you can be made to join
When a Pennsylvania employer takes a tip credit against the tipped minimum cash wage of $2.83 per hour, any mandatory tip pool must be limited to employees who work in occupations where they customarily and regularly receive tips. Examples of such occupations include waiters, bellhops, counter personnel who serve customers, bussers, and service bartenders. This arrangement is sometimes called a "traditional" tip pool. The employer must notify you of any required contribution amount and may only take a tip credit for the tips you ultimately retain after the pool is distributed. The employer may not keep any of the pooled tips for any other purpose, and managers and supervisors are not allowed to receive tips from the pool. If your employer instead pays you at least the full federal minimum wage without taking a tip credit, different rules apply and the pool may include non-tipped employees.
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, if you work two different jobs for the same employer, you are considered a tipped employee only with respect to the job in which you customarily and regularly receive at least $30 a month in tips. For example, if you work as a maintenance person at a hotel and also work as a server, you are a tipped employee only for your server hours. No tip credit can be taken for the hours you spend working in the non-tipped occupation. This is different from a situation where you perform related duties in the same tipped occupation, such as a server who also cleans tables, toasts bread, or makes coffee. Those related duties do not need to produce tips on their own, and the employer can still take a tip credit for those hours because they are part of your tipped occupation. The dual-job rule ensures that your employer pays you the full minimum wage for any hours spent in 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.
Minimum Wage Law Summary (LLC-1) (Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry)
- Minimum cash wage
An employer may pay a minimum of $2.83
Other years
Every Pennsylvania Tipped Minimum Wage year · Tipped Minimum Wage in every state