Massachusetts Minimum Wage Increases Effective January 1, 2017

A reminder for Massachusetts employers: effective January 1, 2017, the minimum wage in Massachusetts is increasing from $10.00 to $11.00 per hour.

The minimum rate for tipped service employees is also increasing, from $3.35 to $3.75 per hour.  This “service rate” only applies to workers who provide services to customers and regularly receive more than $20 in tips per month.  Additionally, their average hourly tips plus the minimum service rate must equal or exceed the $11.00 per hour minimum wage.  Otherwise, service employees must be paid the $11.00 per hour minimum wage.

The rate increases stem from legislation passed in June 2014, which phases in increases to the minimum wage over three years, starting on January 1, 2015.  The 2017 minimum wage increase marks the third and final increase pursuant to the 2014 legislation.

2 thoughts on “Massachusetts Minimum Wage Increases Effective January 1, 2017

  1. i work in a salon .iwork part time. on alot of days i work from 9-12;30. sometimes no clients. but i answer the phone, sweep, clean help others and get 0 pay for my hours put in,. is this right?

  2. This is great news for employees who work hard and deserve to have a decent living wage. For those employees who are “tipped”, it’s important to make sure that their employer is following the regulations and laws in regards to tipped employees, like not sharing the tip money with non-tipped employees, like the cooks, and especially NOT with the owners themselves. I’ve seen this issue far too often- especially with restaurants considered “higher end” that may command more in tips due to higher meal prices.

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