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New York Federal Minimum Wage Alert

June 11th, 2007 Posted by Mark

We have covered the whole debate on the family and wage act changes that Gov. Eliot Spitzer and others in Albany want to pass to provide paid time off to workers to care for their loved ones and for themselves. And we have covered the debate in Albany on whether or not domestic workers should stop being exempt from overtime and minimum wage laws. But we have not talked all that much about the New York minimum wage bill. Why? Well, for starters, the New York minimum wage changed in January 1 of this year, not because of some long, dragged out debate on the issue (as in, say, Missouri or New Mexico) but because of a law passed in previous years. I hate to say the word “boring,” but we could say that New York has its minimum wage issue under control. How’s that?

Anyways, the details of this issue are that on January 1, 2007, the New York minimum wage increased to $7.15 per hour. That was up from its previous level of $6.75 per hour, which the New York minimum wage had become as of January 1, 2006. That rate holds true for most every worker in the state, except those industries that the state of New York has allowed to have their own minimum wages.

For example, as with in other states, New York state allows employers of tupped employees to pay those workers a little less than the regular New York minimum wage. Tipped employees in New York state, as elsewhere, are defined as employees who make as much as $30 in tips per month. In New York, the tipped employee minimum wage is $4.60 per hour, as long as the workers’ tips make up the difference between that and the New York minimum wage. This tipped employee minimum wage, mind you, can be higher in cases where workers have to pay for their own uniform. There is also a separate New York minimum wage if the employee is not necessarily a tipped employee but is still in the service industry. That New York minimum wage is $5.40 per hour.

Also, there are separate and special New York minimum wages for employees in the building services industry, the hotel and hospitality industry, and for those workers in farming and other agricultural pursuits. And all of this information is contained, in gist form, on the New York minimum wage poster that all employers must contain in their work sites on a wall that is frequently passed and easy to see for employees.

But what does all this have to do with the real point of my post here—the federal minimum wage? Well, the point is that in this context as well, the New York minimum wage issue and the federal minimum wage will not get “exciting” any time soon—until 2009.

That’s because when the federal minimum wage changes for the first time in more than 10 years in a few weeks—from $5.15 per hour to $5.85 per hour—the New York minimum wage, at $7.15 per hour, will remain higher than it and thus will be the minimum wage that most all employers in the state must pay. When the federal minimum wage changes again in 2008—from $5.85 per hour to $6.50 per hour—the New York minimum wage will still remain higher again, and again will be the minimum wage that employers have to pay.

The interesting question in all this period, though, is whether or not employers paying those special New York minimum wages—such as for ag workers or hotel workers—will be required to pay the higher federal minimum wage. That is something I will need to look into for you, because it could become an issue. If as an employer you are liable to follow the Fair Labor Standards Act.

Nevertheless, all employers in New York could be facing a new minimum wage—the $7.25 per hour federal minimum wage—in 2009 if the New York minimum wage does not increase between now and then. That would be because at that point the federal minimum wage would be higher than the New York minimum wage.

I looked up the New York minimum wage poster, which I have not seen in a biut and could always use a refresher on, and tried to scope out whether or not the New York minimum wage increases automatically because of an adjustment for inflation every year, and according to the New York minimum wage poster, I could not find any indication of that. There are also some minimum wages on the state level that will automatically increase to a certain level any time the federal minimum wage surpasses them. The increase of this kind is automatically built into the state minimum wage law. According to the New York minimum wage poster, again, I could not find any indication of such a move in the New York minimum wage law. I will need to keep checking and get back to you with it. My supposition would be, however, with a governor such as Gov. Eliot Spitzer at the helm, New York will not have a minimum wage that is lower than the federal minimum wage. However, we will not know for sure until that new New York minimum wage is passed between now and 2009, or until 2008 rolls around, and the New York minimum wage does something then.

In the meantime, we know one thing is for certain. All employers in New York hopefully already have themselves the new New York minimum wage poster on their walls (considering that they have needed it since the first of the year and we’re already half way through 2007). Those employers who are in the farm industry should also have themselves a 2007 New York Farm minimum wage poster. And another thing is certain—time is running out for New York employers *and employers across the country) to have themselves new federal minimum wage posters.