Effective July 24, 2008, the federal minimum wage increased from $5.85 per hour to $6.55 per hour. The federal minimum wage is still lower than the minimum wage required under New York law. New York requires that employers pay a minimum wage of $7.15. Accordingly, employees must still be paid the higher minimum wage in order for employers to comply with New York law.
The federal minimum wage is set to increase again on July 24, 2009 to $7.25 per hour. Assuming there are no further increases to New York’s minimum wage, employers will be required to pay this higher amount to their employees. Indeed, the New York minimum wage is automatically replaced by the federal minimum wage if the latter is higher than New York’s minimum.
For more information concerning minimum wage and overtime, please visit our website.