Starting
January 1, 2014 the minimum wage is going up in the state of Missouri.
The Missouri Department of Labor announced the minimum wage rate set for
2014 has been established at $7.50.
All
businesses are required to pay at minimum, the $7.50 hourly rate,
except retail and service businesses whose annual gross sales are less
than $500,000. Per state law, the minimum wage rate is calculated once a
year and may increase or decrease based on the cost of living as
measured by the previous year’s Consumer Price Index. Missouri law does
not allow the state’s minimum wage rate to be lower than the federal
minimum wage rate.
Compensation
for tipped employees must also total at least $7.50 per hour. Employers
are required to pay tipped employees at least 50 percent of the minimum
wage, or the amount necessary to bring the employee’s total
compensation to a minimum of $7.50 per hour.
