labor lawAdivision of labor law center

July 2009 is an important month for employees and employers alike in South Dakota.

 

On July 24, 2009, the South Dakota minimum wage will increase from $6.55 per hour to $7.25 per hour. When the federal minimum increases, over a dozen states will increase their minimum wage to match the federal.

 

The South Dakota minimum wage increase mirrors the federal minimum wage increase.

 

The majority of the employers in the United States are covered by the federal minimum wage law, the FLSA or Fair Labor Standards Act. That law covers employers who earn $500,000 or more annually, and companies that engage in interstate commerce.

 

The law also applies to individual employees who engage in interstate commerce. For example, a receptionist who answers out-of-state phone calls is considered to be engaged in interstate commerce and would be covered by the federal minimum wage. A worker who ships packages out-of-state and an employee who buys supplies from out-of state vendors would both be covered by the federal minimum wage.

 

There are situations where an employee is eligible for both his or her state minimum and the federal minimum wage. In these scenarios, the employee is entitled to receive whichever minimum wage provides the greater benefit.

 

For example, a California worker is eligible for a minimum wage of $8.00 per hour. If the worker is eligible for federal minimum, too, he or she would be paid the greater benefit of the California minimum wage.

 

In Georgia, however, where the minimum wage is $5.15 per hour, an employee covered by both the state and federal minimum would receive the higher federal minimum.

 

Three states, Illinois included, will raise their minimum wage on July 1, 2009. The Illinois minimum will go up by 25 cents from $7.75 per hour to $8.00 per hour. This increase was the result of a vigorous campaign by then-Governor Rod Blagojevich. Another increase of 25 cents per hour will occur on July 1, 2010 in Illinois.

 

 

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1. Posted by: Duane Miller

   I’m the treasurer of the [employer name deleted] golf course and want to know if we have to pay our employees minimum wage? We serve food, beer and take in green fees.

   Duane M.

2. Posted by: Amelia

   Hi Duane! You may want to double check with the South Dakota Department of Labor, but yes, it appears that you must pay the minimum wage to employees. The South Dakota and federal minimum wage are the same. Any employees who accept credit/debit cards (or out-of-state checks) for payment are covered by the federal minimum wage law. Other employees in the state are covered by the South Dakota minimum wage law. Many states have a long list of excluded occupations — South Dakota does not. Almost all employees in the state except certain disabled employees (in a workshop setting) are covered by the state minimum wage law.
   An employee who earns at least $35 per month in tips can be paid the tipped minimum wage of $2.13 per hour. However, if the employee does not earn enough tips to average $6.55 per hour over the payroll week (or $7.25 per hour beginning July 24, 2009) then as the employer you must pay the difference. As an employer you can require that employees claim all tips they actually received. However, it is illegal and unethical for you to require that they claim a amount of tips in excess of the actual tips received. Employees who are not traditionally tipped must be paid the full minimum wage. HTH, and thanks for reading the blogs!~ Amelia