Florida Wage and Hour Laws: Minimum Wage, Overtime & Breaks

Florida wage and hour laws rest on two layers: a state constitutional minimum wage that rises on a fixed schedule, and the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), which handles overtime, exemptions, breaks, and pay frequency. Florida has no state overtime statute, no required meal or rest breaks for adults, and no law dictating how often workers must be paid, so the FLSA fills those gaps.

Current Minimum Wage and the 2026 Increase

A 2020 amendment to Article X, Section 24 of the Florida Constitution set a six-year schedule that raises the state minimum wage by one dollar every September 30. From September 30, 2025 through September 29, 2026, the minimum wage is $14.00 per hour. On September 30, 2026, it reaches $15.00 per hour, completing the schedule voters approved.¹

Starting in 2027, the dollar-per-year increases end. The state will instead adjust the rate each September 30 based on the prior twelve months’ change in the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W).² The $15.00 floor can rise with inflation but will not drop below it.

Only workers who would qualify for the federal minimum wage under the FLSA are entitled to the state rate. A worker the FLSA exempts entirely is not automatically covered by Florida’s rate either.³ Florida also preempts cities and counties from setting local minimum-wage rates, so the statewide figure is the only one that applies.

Tipped Employee Pay

Florida’s constitution freezes the tip credit at $3.02 per hour, the amount the FLSA allowed in 2003. Employers can subtract that $3.02 from the full minimum wage, so the direct cash wage owed to tipped employees is $10.98 per hour through September 29, 2026, and $11.98 per hour starting September 30, 2026.⁴

The tip credit only works if tips actually close the gap. When a tipped worker’s cash wage plus tips for the pay period falls short of the full minimum wage, the employer has to make up the difference. The FLSA also limits the tip credit to workers who customarily and regularly receive more than $30 per month in tips.

Overtime Pay

Because Florida has no overtime statute, the FLSA controls. Non-exempt employees must be paid at least one and one-half times their regular rate for every hour worked beyond 40 in a single workweek.⁵ A workweek is any fixed, recurring 168-hour period. It does not have to match a calendar week, and an employer cannot average hours across two or more workweeks to avoid overtime.

The “regular rate” is broader than the hourly wage. It includes nondiscretionary bonuses (production, attendance, and safety bonuses), commissions, and most other compensation tied to hours or performance. Truly discretionary bonuses and gifts for special occasions are excluded.⁶ An employer who leaves a quarterly production bonus out of the overtime calculation owes the shortfall for every overtime hour that quarter.

No private agreement waives overtime. Even if a worker signs a contract accepting a flat salary for unlimited hours, the FLSA still requires overtime pay for non-exempt employees who exceed 40 hours in a workweek.⁷

Who Is Exempt

Certain salaried executive, administrative, and professional employees are exempt from overtime. To qualify, the worker must be paid on a salary basis at or above a weekly threshold and must perform duties that meet specific tests. After a federal court vacated the Department of Labor’s 2024 rule, the applicable salary level reverted to the 2019 figure: $684 per week, or $35,568 per year.⁸

A separate highly compensated employee exemption applies at $107,432 per year, provided the worker performs at least one exempt duty. Job titles never settle the question on their own. A “manager” paid $40,000 on salary who spends most shifts doing the same tasks as hourly staff likely fails the duties test.

Independent Contractor Misclassification

Some employers label workers as independent contractors to avoid overtime and minimum wage. The FLSA looks past labels and asks whether the worker is economically dependent on the employer or genuinely in business for themselves. The Department of Labor weighs factors like the worker’s opportunity for profit or loss, the degree of employer control, and the permanence of the relationship.⁹ A misclassified worker can file a wage claim to recover unpaid overtime and minimum wages.

Rest and Meal Breaks

Florida does not require employers to give adult workers any rest or meal breaks. If breaks are offered, federal rules decide whether they are paid. Short breaks of roughly 5 to 20 minutes count as compensable work time. Meal periods of 30 minutes or longer are unpaid only when the employee is completely relieved of duties.¹⁰ A “lunch break” spent answering phones, monitoring equipment, or staying at a workstation is paid time.

Minors are the exception, covered below.

Hour Limits for Workers Under 18

Florida imposes stricter rules on minors, varying by age and whether school is in session.

Workers 15 and younger:

School days: no more than 3 hours, and no work before 7 a.m. or after 7 p.m. when school is scheduled the next day.
School weeks: no more than 15 hours total.
Summer and holidays: no more than 8 hours per day or 40 hours per week, with no work before 7 a.m. or after 9 p.m.
A 30-minute meal break is required after every 4 consecutive hours worked.

Workers 16 and 17:

School days: no more than 8 hours, and no work before 6:30 a.m. or after 11 p.m. when school is scheduled the next day.
School weeks: no more than 30 hours total, though a parent or school superintendent can waive this cap.
A 30-minute meal break is required after 4 consecutive hours only when the minor works 8 or more hours in a day.¹¹

Wage Deductions

Employers sometimes dock pay for broken equipment, cash-register shortages, uniform costs, or customer walkouts. Under the FLSA, no deduction can reduce effective pay below the minimum wage, and no deduction can cut into overtime earnings. Shortages and breakage are costs of doing business, and shifting them to the employee when the result pushes pay under the legal minimum is a violation.

Pay Frequency and Final Paychecks

Florida has no state law setting a required pay schedule.¹² The FLSA requires wages owed for a pay period to be paid on the next regularly scheduled payday. The same rule applies when an employee quits or is fired: the final paycheck is due on the next regular payday covering the period in which the employee last worked. Florida does not impose a shorter deadline the way some states do.

If you suspect you are being underpaid, keep your own copies of pay stubs, schedules, and any written communications about hours or rate. Employers must preserve core payroll records for at least three years and supporting documents like time cards for at least two,¹³ but records sometimes disappear or contain errors, and your personal copies can fill the gap.

Filing a Wage Claim in Florida

Before suing an employer in Florida court for unpaid minimum wages, you must send a written notice of intent. The notice has to identify the minimum wage you believe you are owed, the actual or estimated dates and hours you worked, and the total unpaid wages through the date of the notice.³

The statute requires the notice to be in writing but does not mandate a particular delivery method. Certified mail with a return receipt creates proof the employer received it, which is worth the small cost.

Once the employer receives the notice, a 15-calendar-day window opens for the employer to pay the full amount claimed or otherwise resolve the dispute. The statute of limitations pauses during those 15 days.³

If the employer ignores the notice or refuses to pay, you can file a civil lawsuit. A worker who prevails is entitled to the full unpaid back wages plus an equal amount in liquidated damages, effectively doubling the recovery, along with reasonable attorney fees and costs.¹⁴ An employer found liable for an intentional violation also faces a $1,000 fine per violation payable to the state.

Overtime claims and other FLSA-based disputes have a separate federal track. You can file a complaint with the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division, which may investigate at no cost. Complaints are confidential; the WHD will not disclose your name or even confirm a complaint exists.¹⁵

Deadlines for Filing

Under the FLSA, you have two years from the date of each violation to file suit. If the violation was willful, that window extends to three years.¹⁶ For state minimum-wage claims under Section 448.110, Florida applies the limitations period in its general statute, Section 95.11,³ which can be longer than the FLSA’s two years. The clock runs from the date each violation occurred, not the date you discovered it.

Retaliation Is Illegal

Federal law makes it unlawful for an employer to fire, demote, cut hours, or otherwise punish a worker for filing a wage complaint, cooperating with an investigation, or testifying in a wage-related proceeding.¹⁷ The protection covers complaints to the Wage and Hour Division and, under most federal courts, internal complaints made directly to the employer. It also reaches former employees, so an employer cannot retaliate with a negative reference after you leave.¹⁸

Retaliation itself can be the basis of a separate complaint or private lawsuit. Available remedies include reinstatement, lost wages, and an equal amount in liquidated damages. If your employer threatens you after you raise a pay issue, that threat is itself a violation.

1
FloridaJobs.org. Minimum Wage in Florida – Notice to Employees
2
Florida Division of Elections. Florida Constitution Article X Section 24 – Raising Florida’s Minimum Wage
3
Florida Legislature. Florida Code 448.110 – State Minimum Wage; Annual Wage Adjustment; Enforcement
4
FloridaJobs.org. Florida’s Minimum Wage Announcement
5
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 29 USC 207 – Maximum Hours
6
U.S. Department of Labor. Fact Sheet: Bonuses Under the Fair Labor Standards Act
7
U.S. Department of Labor. Fact Sheet 23: Overtime Pay Requirements of the FLSA
8
U.S. Department of Labor. Earnings Thresholds for the Executive, Administrative, and Professional Exemption
9
U.S. Department of Labor. Fact Sheet 13: Employment Relationship Under the Fair Labor Standards Act
10
U.S. Department of Labor. Breaks and Meal Periods
11
Florida Senate. Florida Code 450.081 – Hours of Work in Certain Occupations
12
U.S. Department of Labor. State Payday Requirements
13
U.S. Department of Labor. Fact Sheet 21: Recordkeeping Requirements Under the Fair Labor Standards Act
14
Florida Senate. Florida Code 448.110 – State Minimum Wage; Annual Wage Adjustment; Enforcement
15
U.S. Department of Labor. How to File a Complaint
16
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 29 USC 255 – Statute of Limitations
17
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 29 USC 215 – Prohibited Acts
18
U.S. Department of Labor. Fact Sheet 77A: Prohibiting Retaliation Under the Fair Labor Standards Act